Journey Anew
by Anime Disney
Summary: A dime-a-dozen collection of one/two-shots of what I think would happen after the events of Brotherhood, from Al's time in Xing and his relationship with Mei to Edward and Winry's new marriage and the prospect of children. Will only really focus on the Elric boys and their lives post military. Rated T because FMA. (I do not own FMA! All the rights go to the respective owners!)
1. Journey Anew (Part 1)

**I know, I used the same title for the collection as the title for this two shot, but I honestly couldn't think of a better title. I think it actually matches pretty well.**

 **Synopsis: It's been one year since Al arrived in Xing and started training with Mei. Him, Zampano, Jerzo, and Mei are just about to set off further East to learn more about the world and its alchemy. However, just as they're prepared to leave, some trouble pops up at the normally quiet Imperial Palace. While trying to solve the problem and prepare for the long journey ahead of them, both Al and Mei begin to fully realize their feelings and try to muster up the courage to express them.**

 **Reminder: This is just something that popped into my head that I thought would be cool if it happened after the events of Brotherhood. Do with it as you will.**

"Lady Mei, may I come in?"

"Please, do," the princess of Xing replied amiably. As she put the last pin in her hair, the door opened to reveal a servant girl dressed in a beige jumpsuit with a black belt, the attire expected for a handmaiden of Mei's half-sister, Tsubaki, from the Fa clan. She was eighteen, two years older than Mei and the same age as Alphonse. Her long, obsidian black hair was tied back in two low pigtails, and her face, though completely lacking makeup, had a natural beauty to it that showed off the girl's gentle nature. Also, despite having toned muscles from some of her general tasks, she held herself in a very reserved, slouched way, making her look smaller than she was.

"Oh, Chen," Mei turned and greeted the girl with a bright smile. "How are you?"

"Oh..." Chen looked around awkwardly, not meeting Mei's eyes. The princess's smile dropped a bit. While she knew her sister wasn't by any means abusive to her servants, she wasn't exactly the best master in the East. Tsubaki was not normally one to give out compliments or chat it up with those beneath her.

The servant girl was able to muster up a small smile. "I'm doing as well as I can."

Mei smiled gently. It was better than nothing. "That's good to hear. What is it you need? Does my sister request my presence?"

Chen's smile disappeared, and she once again began to look around nervously. "Uh...no. I was...I was wondering if I could...perhaps...talk to you...about something?"

Mei stared at the girl for a moment, surprised, then let out a small chuckle. "That's all? Chen, you didn't have to get all nervous about that. Of course, you can talk to me about anything."

The older girl looked surprised, but cautious. "You're sure?"

"Absolutely." Mei suddenly remembered the pile of clothes that was laying on her bed. Rubbing her neck sheepishly, she asked, "Is it alright if I pack while we talk?"

"Oh, uh, of course," Chen said softly, not used to having a royal ask her permission for something. She remained quiet for a minute or two while Mei began her packing.

Finally, she spoke, "You're packing for your trip East?"

"Yeah. I want to make sure I have all my essentials and such." Mei let out an exasperated sigh. "It may be fun, but planning for a long trip is such a hassle."

Chen couldn't help but give a gentle smile. She had gotten to know Princess Mei, as well as many of the other royals, after the higher-ups of the Fa clan moved into the palace with Emperor Ling. While it certainly wasn't anywhere near close to a friendship, Chen immediately knew that Mei was much more easygoing than her older sister.

"Your group leaves in a week, correct?" the girl asked, genuinely curious.

"Yep. Alphonse, Zampano, Jerzo, and I..." Mei stopped suddenly, looking at the servant girl questioningly. "How did you know?"

"Oh.." She looked down, not being able to hide a small blush on her cheeks. "Al told me. He's been talking about this trip for a while. He's really excited about it..." Chen suddenly realized who she was talking to, and stiffened up. "Master Alphonse, than is!"

"You've been talking to Alphonse?" Mei tried to bite back the slight jealousy in her voice. She didn't know why she still did this. Her and Al saw each other every day, her training him in alkahestry for hours on end, and it had been that way for over a year now. The two of them had definitely grown closer over his time in Xing, which Mei was forever grateful for, but it's not like they were...together or anything. Still, she couldn't help but tighten up when she saw Chen blush while mentioning him, though she really couldn't blame her.

"Um...yes," Chen told the princess, looking down at the floor and wringing her hands nervously. "Whenever Lady Tsubaki allows me some free time, I always end up finding myself in the library, and he typically ends up being there. He's taught me many things - about his home country, the alchemy they have there, the alkahestry that you've taught him. I...I'm very grateful to him."

Mei let out a small gasp when she saw a few tears in the girl's eyes.

"He's taught me so many things that I might have never known," Chen continued, her voice gradually growing softer. "He's told me about a world I'll never get to see."

Mei's heart constricted with sympathy. _Dammit, Al. No wonder she fell for you._

Alphonse was, by far, the most kind, selfless, and beautiful soul she'd ever met in her life. He was always striving for knowledge, as well as yearning to give it. It was for that reason that she was initially drawn to him when they'd met all those years ago. It was for that reason that, since then, she'd...

Mei gave the older girl a soft smile. "I see. That sounds like Al, alright."

Chen hesitantly looked up, unsure of what to do with this response.

Mei did her best to get out her next words without choking on them. "You have feelings for him?"

The proceeding bright red blush told her enough, though the servant didn't give a verbal answer. However, just as Mei was about to say something, Chen spoke, "That is actually what I wanted to talk to you about."

This caught the princess's attention. With a raised eyebrow, she asked, "About Alphonse?"

"Well, yes. If you could answer me honestly, your highness...what are your feelings towards Alphonse Elric?"

"My...feelings?"

Just saying those words made the butterflies in her stomach begin to swarm. The first time she'd met Alphonse, she had perceived him as a villain, mostly due to a huge misunderstanding involving her panda sister, Xiao Mei, which was honestly a long story. However, that all changed when he had first saved her from their first encounter with Father and his hommunculi children, right after her brother Ling had been turned into Greed, which was yet another rather long story. He had hidden her from the enemies in his soul-bonded armor (which was, guess what - another long story!) and brought her to a doctor who helped healed her up. It was then that she had developed a crush on him - perhaps a little on the childish side, but a crush none the less. Then, time after time over her time in Amestris, she had witnessed his many feats of selflessness and bravery, many of which were to save either her or his older brother, Edward, who she was sure he loved more than anything else in the world.

Then there was one act that she would never forget for the rest of her life...

 _"Mei, I need a favor."_

 _She looked over to the suit of armor next to her, the one that harbored the soul of Alphonse Elric. The whole front half of his body was gone, blasted off after he had shielded her from some kind of energy blast from Father. In front of them, said enemy was slowly making his way toward Alphonse's older brother, Edward, whose automail right arm had been blown off while his left was pinned to concrete by a metal rod. He was trapped. Just a second ago, Alphonse had been screaming bloody murder for the man to stop, to get back from his brother, and that had made Mei's heart break enough, but now the boy in the armor was calm, which somehow scared her even more._

 _"Back then," Al told her, "Ed was willing to sacrifice his right arm in order to get my soul back. So...shouldn't the reverse be possible?"_

 _Mei's blood froze in her veins. She may not have known much about alchemy, but she knew enough to know what he was implying. "Alphonse...what are you saying?"_

 _"All you have to do is clear a path," the boy continued confidently. He turned to her. "Can you do that?"_

Can I do that? _she thought._ Do what? Help you go and get yourself killed? Help your plan that might not even work?

 _Tears welling up in her eyes, she yelled, "But if you do this, do you know what will happen?"_

 _"There's no time!" he shouted back, and she could finally hear the panic in his voice. The armor's two glowing eyes pierced her soul. His next words echoed in her ears. "Please, Mei. It's the only way. It_ has _to be you."_

 _Of course, he knew. That idiot. That selfless, kind, brave, stupid idiot. She remembered back when they'd been up North, when Envy had informed them about Ed's disappearance from Baschool. She had never heard Al sound so anguished. Well...not until now anyway. Was she going to allow this sweet boy to sit here, helpless, as his one and only family was killed in front of him? Even if it pained her to have to possibly lead him to his death, it might even hurt her worse to see him hurting with her being an indirect cause._

 _Mei threw her head back, letting out a sob, then proceeded to draw her circle and throw her kunai in Edward's direction._

She remembered those few moments after the battle was over, when both her and Ed sat there beside Al's empty armor. She'd never cried so much in her life, and, seeing Edward's horrified face, she sobbed out apology after apology, though she knew it wouldn't bring the boy's brother back. She'd thought she killed him. Ed, may whoever's in charge bless his gifted soul, was, thankfully, able to ingeniously bring Alphonse back among the living - mind, body, and soul - by giving up his ability to use alchemy. She'd sobbed and sobbed, and when Al gained consciousness, she had tackled him with a big hug. He was all skin and bones, and his hair was all the way down his back, but that didn't matter. After pulling away from the hug, they'd met eyes, and, even though she'd never seen Al with his original body, she knew for a fact that it was still the same stupid, brave, kind boy that had left her.

After that, she'd gone home to Xing, and the two of them didn't talk to one another until about a year later, when Al had written her a letter asking if he could come to Xing so she could teach him alkahestry. She'd been so ecstatic, so much so that Lan Fan had had to restrain her from jumping up down and breaking the floor. They wrote each other letters over the next year, mostly concerning the arrangements of the trip and the training, but there was some small talk about what life was like for the other on the other side of the paper. Even so, she could tell that he hadn't changed one bit, and that fact made her happy beyond belief.

She had tried to mentally prepare herself. She had matured quite a bit since the two of them had last seen each other, so she wondered if the feelings she'd had towards him were simply a child's crush and nothing more. In fact, by the time Al, Zampano, and Jerzo arrived at the palace, she had convinced herself that that was the case. Then she saw him... _oh, she saw him,_ and it took all her willpower to not melt right there. For some reason, she had still been expecting the suit of armor or maybe even the skin-and-bones version of Al that she had previously seen. She had _not_ been expecting the ruggedly handsome young man that stood before her. His golden hair had been cut short, with some short bangs swept across his forehead, his face was more filled out, his jaw more angular, and his body _much_ more muscular, which she had noticed a lot during their first sparring match. Other than appearance, though, Alphonse truly hadn't changed a bit, not even his voice, which he insisted was just taking it's time to catch up to his physical age. After only being back with him for a day, Mei's feelings had returned, only ten times stronger, and they only multiplied from there.

The past year held many dear memories for her. Not only had her and Al gotten to know a lot about each other, but she'd even grown closer to Zampano and Jerzo, who, while looking big and touch, were actually just huge teddy bears, much like Alphonse when he was in his armor. Alphonse's voice did eventually drop, as he always insisted it would, and the shocking deepness and slight gruffness to it made Mei's face redden for a couple weeks afterward until she grew used to it. As far as the training went, while it did get frustrating for both parties at some points, Al was learning fairly quickly how to harness the power of alkahestry, much better than he had when she'd tried to teach him a couple years ago in Amestris. He was a very enjoyable student, and Mei loved being able to teach him while he taught her about alchemy as well. When Al had offered for her to accompany him and the guys on their journey further East, she'd jumped at the idea, not only to be with her dear friends, but to learn more about the world and its treasures. Alphonse certainly wasn't the only one with a thirst for knowledge.

"My feelings..." Mei repeated, coming out of her thoughts.

 _I look forward to having you as my teacher._ Alphonse had told her on the first day of training, bowing both out of respect and somewhat playfulness.

She had smiled and bowed back. _And I look forward to having you as my dear pupil, Alphonse Elric._

The words that she had been wanting to say out loud for so long now, but for some reason had never found the voice, suddenly flowed off her tongue with the greatest ease.

"I love him."

Chen let out a small gasp, and Mei turned toward her to see her eyes filled with disbelief and devastation. Yet, at the same time, there was knowing and understanding as well. Mei felt sympathy and guilt beat at her heart. This servant girl had just told about her feelings for Al, and now suddenly she hears that the princess loves him? God knows what was going through her mind.

Letting out a nervous laugh, the younger girl added on, "It's not like he's noticed, though. Al is, by far, one of the smartest people in his field, but he's a little dense when it comes to some of the simplest things. He's very similar to his brother in that way."

She laughed again. While frustrating at times, she loved that obliviousness as well. It had even saved her a few times when she'd let something a little too romantic slip her lips. She was pretty sure Zampano and Jerzo had caught on though, because they would occasionally tease her about it whenever the three of them were alone. They would even sometimes make comments to Al, which absolutely mortified her, though he caught on very rarely. The few times when Al did catch on, though, he would glance at her slightly, only for the two of them to turn away blushing. This act always struck at her heart, filling her with a little bit of hope. In the back of her mind, she kept hoping that maybe her feelings were reciprocated, even if it was just a little bit.

Every time, she mentally slapped herself. Alphonse didn't come all the way to Xing to get a girlfriend. He simply wanted for her to teach him the ways of Xingese alkahestry, and she had to respect that. Still, it didn't put a stop to the want in her heart.

Suddenly, Chen's eyes softened, a small smile spreading across her face, and she looked to the ground. "I guess I must agree with you on that, my lady. Still...you shouldn't give up."

Mei looked at her, shocked by both her demeanor and her words.

The servant girl looked up, staring into the eyes of the princess, her own filled with tears. "You said that you love him, and the way that you said it..." She clenched her fists at her sides, shaking. "You were so straightforward, so sure. Your eyes shine bright whenever you speak of him, and your voice goes into a gentle whisper. He may be rather oblivious, but I assure you he...he is so fond of you, my lady. Whenever I sit with him, he always speaks of his lessons with you and about how patient and considerate you are. He...he cares about you very much."

Mei's chest grew exceedingly warm at her words, and she could feel a blush creep onto her cheeks. Did Alphonse really talk about her that way? Even so, it didn't necessarily mean much. Alphonse spoke fondly of just about everyone, unless they were obviously cruel, so he could've easily have been just talking about her as a friend.

Suddenly, Chen looked down at the floor and broke into sobs. Before Mei could even do anything, the girl ran around the bed and fell to her knees in front of the princess. "I'm sorry...I can't...I can't do it!"

Mei stared at the girl with wide eyes, her heart filled with concern. "What do you mean...?"

In response to her question, the servant quickly reached behind her. Quick as a flash, a dagger within its sheath lay beside her on the bed, Chen having thrown it there. Mei's stomach turned to lead as she stared at the weapon, coming to a realization. Turning to her sister's servant, she spoke, her voice quiet with horror, "You were...you were going to..."

"Forgive me..." Chen's hands shook violently as she gripped the end of Mei's pant leg. Her face was to the ground, her head bowed in shame. "I..I swear, I...I never wanted to...I could never hurt Al..." She let out a sob. "She ordered me to...but you're so kind and so much better than me..." Gasping through her tears, she screamed, "I just can't!"

The next few seconds went by so fast that Mei wasn't able to comprehend them until they were over. Something swooped down from the ceiling, faster than lightning and causing a wind that knocked down some of the paintings in the room. The only sound she heard was that of Chen screaming in pain. When the dust settled and her eyes adjusted, Mei froze in terror at what lay before her: Chen was on the floor, writhing in pain, a long blade wound stretching down her back, causing her to bleed out onto the carpet, and above her, bloody spear in hand, was the girl's master - Mei's half-sister.

Tsubaki Fa looked exactly like many of her royal siblings - long, flowing black hair, obsidian eyes, a somewhat harsh-looking face, and an imposing stature. She was the ripe age of twenty one, two years older than her brother Ling, but her normally regal clothing and makeup tended to make her look more mature and defined. In terms of personality, she fell into the more aggressive half of the Emperor's children. She certainly had the superiority-complex of royalty, however she felt that royals must prove their worth in order to determine superiority over each other. There had been rumors that, before their father's health had begun to deteriorate and before Mei and Ling had returned from Amestris with the Philosopher's Stone, she had been one the Emperor's first choices as heir to the throne.

The Fa girl looked down at her servant with disdain. "That goes to show you: never send a servant to do an assassin's job."

"Tsubaki..." Mei quickly stood from the bed, staring at her older sister with wide eyes. She could hear Chen whimpering in pain on the floor, which was quickly replacing her fear and confusion with anger. Chen was one of the gentlest, quietest people Mei had ever met, yet her mistress had ordered her to kill, and when she failed to do that, she struck her down. _Why?_ Why on earth would she do that?

Mei gave her sister a steely glare, speaking in the most authoritative tone possible. "What is the meaning of this!?"

Tsubaki turned to her sibling, her indifferent expression being replaced with a condescending smirk. "Oh, look at this. The little Chang princess thinks she's high and mighty just because she's pals with her big brother the Emperor."

Said Chang girl remained firm, though she was shaking with anger. For some reason, she didn't find herself to be all that shocked. She had always felt a dark, somewhat evil chi coming from her older sister, but even then, she still couldn't understand what had provoked her.

"Why?" she asked, her face contorted. "Chen has always been loyal to you, and I have done nothing to provoke this attack. So, why?" She reached down into her belt, retrieving two razor-sharp kunai. Holding them in a defensive stance, she yelled, "Why did you order her to kill me!?"

"You say you've done nothing?" This seemed to take Tsubaki aback, but in an amusing way. She threw her head back and let out a laugh. "Nothing!?"

She laughed some more, only to once again direct her smirk towards Mei. "I'm afraid I don't have to tell you anything, my dear sister. As far as your concerned, I'm doing this simply because I hate you with every inch of my being."

"Huh?" This took Mei completely off guard. Tsubaki's smirk widened into an evil grin, seeing her sister's weakened defenses. She was about to strike, but a tugging on her skirt stopped her.

"Please...my lady..." Chen held tight to her mistress's kimono. Wincing in pain, she whimpered, "Please don't harm her..."

"Get off of me, you wretch!" Tsubaki sneered, kicking the poor girl so hard that she flew into the opposite wall, almost completely out the doorway.

"Chen!" Mei shouted in horror, but she was only allowed concern for that split second. Tsubaki seized her chance and charged in. Mei only just managed to block her spear's blow with the tiny blades she held. Pushing her older sister back, Mei took the offensive, coming in from below and sideswiping with her kunai. Tsubaki blocked her blow just as easily. This cycle continued for awhile, though how exactly long, neither girl was sure. Paintings were ripped to shreds, the columns on the bed were dented, and the items on the shelves were all knocked off. Attack, block, kick, swipe - it continued.

Mei couldn't help but glance at the spot where Chen lay. She was shocked to find the girl not on the floor in a heap. In fact, she had disappeared. Had someone removed her from the room without either of the princesses' knowledge? Had she crawled her way out?

 _Smack!_ Tsubaki landed a hard kick to Mei's chest, sending her backward. Her body, especially her head, smacked against the stone wall, causing her vision to immediately blur and her bones to turn into lead. A burst of hot pain erupted from her abdomen, though she was so disoriented that she could only manage a small grunt in response. She looked ahead, but all she could see was a blurred vision of the older princess, her staff extended between her and herself.

 _She stabbed me._ That thought managed to pass through Mei's mind before her legs gave way and she fell to the floor.

Tsubaki's menacing chuckle echoed through her skull. "I'm disappointed, Mei. I heard you were a pretty strong warrior, but I guess everyone I talked too was simply a weakling."

Mei could already feel herself loosing consciousness. Her chest hurt from the hard kick Tsubaki had dealt her, making it hard to breathe. She could feel her side quickly becoming wet from the blood seeping from her stab wound, which didn't help her lightheadedness. Not only that, but she was pretty sure she had a concussion. These were all only slight thoughts though, as she could feel her brain slowly turning off.

After a few silent moments of blurry silence, Tsubaki's figure loomed above her, raising her spear. "Goodbye, little sister."

Suddenly, the older princess noticeably whipped around. Just as Mei' s vision began to darken, she saw bright sparks of blue light. There were a few more seconds of silence. A voice began to call out her name, but she couldn't tell who it was.

That's when she left.

 **Gee, I wonder who that person is...**

 **Hope you liked that first part of this two shot! Hopefully, Part 2 will be on it's way real soon!**

 **Please favorite and review this story to tell me what you think! I love zee feedback!**

 **Have a nice day!**


	2. Journey Anew (Part 2)

**Here's Part 2 - a continuation of the last chapter. Let's check up on Al's side of the story, shall we?**

* * *

"You'd think you would've read all the books in this library by now," Jerzo commented from his relaxed position on the floor, hands behind his head and eyes closed.

Alphonse lowered the book he was reading onto the table, smiling at his friend. "To be honest, I'm pretty sure I have, but I wanted to double check something in this one. There's something from Mei's last lesson that isn't settling in my brain quite right."

"Maybe she's just a bad teacher."

"Don't let her catch you saying that," the alchemist chuckled, picking up his book once again. "Besides, you know as well as I do that there isn't a better alkahestrist in this whole city."

After everything she'd taught him over the past year, Al truly believed that there was no one who could perform alkahestry like Mei could. It wasn't even necessarily that she was the most skilled in the craft. In fact, she had told him that there were countless things she had yet to learn and that she was really only a amateur herself, but that didn't stop her abilities from blowing him away every time. There was just something about her that made her alkahestry special, though he hadn't been able to pinpoint it yet. Maybe it was the confidence she had in her skill, or the proud smile she would dawn whenever she accomplished something new, or the way her dark eyes would shine in the blue light...She really was amazing.

His lips spread into a small, gentle smile.

Jerzo snorted. "I guess you're right, but even you have to admit that that girl runs you ragged during practice sometimes." He paused for a few seconds, then let out a small chuckle. "There's that face again."

Al lowered his look once again, raising an eyebrow. "What face?"

The chimera gave the boy a knowing smirk. "You're thinking out Mei."

Alphonse felt his face grow a bit hot. "Well, yeah, we were just talking about her."

"Uh, uh. You had the face you always have when you're thinking..." He proceeded to say the next few sentences with a bad impression of his friend. "' _God, Mei is so beautiful and amazing! She's such a great teacher! I just wanna take her in my arms and kiss her till my heart's content!"_

"Will you please stop!" Al pleaded, fully aware he probably looked like a tomato. After receiving some strange looks from the few other people in the room, he settled back into his chair, narrowing his eyes at Jerzo, who simply chuckled some more.

"You're not denying it," he defended. His teasing smirk faded into a soft, almost brotherly smile. "Al...I know Zampano and I are always on your back about this, and we really are just messing with you, but still..."

His friend's sudden tonal shift took Alphonse by surprise, and it had certainly gotten his attention, making him listen intently.

"Things may not have worked out so well for me, but I'd like to think I know a thing or two about love," Jerzo continued, looking up at his friend with earnest eyes. "You may not have even realized it yourself, but I've seen the way you look at that girl. You soften, but light up at the same time, and there's always a hint of pride in there as well. It reminds me of the first time I ever saw your brother look at Ms. Winry, back when we were all at Briggs."

This startled the younger Elric.

"His eyes looked exactly like yours do now. You two may be completely different personality wise, but I can at least say your eyes are damned near identical."

Al let the man's words sink in, but his heart was still a whirlpool of emotions. He wasn't sure when it had all started - when being close to Mei had begun to make him blush, when he'd begun noticing all her curves and beautiful facial features while they sparred, when her bubbly, snarky, energetic presence became essential to his everyday schedule. It had all just seemed to hit him at once, though it had been happening gradually, and he had absolutely no clue how to deal with any of it. He'd only really had two crushes his entire life: Winry, who he didn't really count because he was really little at the time (that, and he knew that Ed had her from the start) and Julia Crichton from Milos, who he'd only known for a few days and hadn't seen in nearly four years. In some ways, he guessed he couldn't even count those. While Ed was a State Alchemist and he a suit of armor, neither of the boys really had the time or the interest to think about girls all that much, so after their journey to get their bodies back was completed, the whole romantic scene was incredibly awkward for the both of them. Though, Ed eventually got over it, not only dating Winry but proposing to her, according to one of said girl's earlier letters to Xing. Al had been completely dumbfounded. Out of all people, _his brother_ had sorted out his feelings before he had.

Letting out a tiny chuckle, the boy muttered, "I've lived my life as a hallow suit of armor, I've seen bloodshed so many times, and I went up against immortal beings planning to sacrifice the people of my country to create a Philosopher's Stone...yet I can't confess my feelings to the girl I care about."

Jerzo chuckled as well. "Yeah, you're pretty pathetic."

The two of them exchanged a look, busting into quiet laughter. However, the mood was shattered by the sound of the library door slamming open and a familiar voice echoing out: "Where's Alphonse!?"

A chill shot down Al's spine, the urgency in the voice causing him to immediately bolt out of his chair and run towards it, Jerzo following quickly behind. "Zampano!"

The two of them ran down the aisles of shelves, passing some nobles and other people who'd been roaming, but had stopped because of the shouting. Nearing the entryway to the library, Al shouted again, "Zampano, what's...!?"

He froze dead in his tracks, eyes widening in horror. Zampano stood in the doorway, his shirt splattered with blood. In his arms, he gingerly held one of the royal servants, Chen, who was unconscious with blood dripping from her back.

"Clear a table! Quickly!" Zampano ordered, concern contorting his face.

Everyone rushed and did as he asked, clearing all scrolls and papers from the closest table. As soon as Zampano laid the girl down, Al snapped out of his thoughts, going into his battlefield mode. He immediately understood why Zampano had brought her here: she needed his help.

"What happened?" he asked his friend, who was holding Chen up on her side. Al's throat caught when he saw her whole back, along with her beige jumpsuit, caked in blood.

"I don't know. I was on my way here when I just saw here crawling down the hall, leaving a trail of blood behind her." Zampano furrowed his eyebrows. "She's got a long wound on her back, almost like someone slashed her right down the middle."

That wasn't much of a surprise, but still, the wound was almost invisible under all the blood. Al looked down at the girl's face, concern overtaking his heart. He knew that Chen was a servant to the Fa clan, specifically Mei's sister Tsubaki, and ever since the family had shown up at the palace, Al had found Chen in the library about once a week. She was a very simple girl - gentle, shy, kind, and rather pretty, but she lacked much self confidence and education, which was understandable given her status. Even so, it hadn't sat well Al, so he'd started to teach her all kind of things from geography to science (he _had_ to throw some alchemy in there), and it made him happy to see that not only was she happy to receive this knowledge, but it seemed to be raising her confidence as well.

"I will forever be in your debt, Alphonse," she'd said the last time they'd been in the library together. She had looked up to him and smiled. "Thank you."

 _Why?_ The thought raced through his mind. _Why would someone do this to her?_ Who _did this to her?_

"Can you help her?" Jerzo asked him, looking horrified.

Al pursed his lips. Could he? "I'll probably be able to close up the wound. Beyond that, I don't know."

He leaned over Chen and, even though she probably couldn't hear him, said, "This might hurt a little bit."

Exactly like he'd practiced with Mei, Al drew an alkahestry circle, unfortunately having to use Chen's blood, and gently placed his hands on her blood soaked back. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he began to concentrate. He knew he had to let go of the logic-based alchemist inside him. Alkahestry, while dwelling in the realm of science, was much more spiritual than the alchemy of Amestris, so he did his best to do as Mei had taught him by harnessing the dragon's pulse. Still, the only time he'd ever really applied his studies was when he healed some minor scrapes for the children in the nearby village. He was in no way prepared to heal something on this big of scale. Still, Chen's smile of wonder flashed in his mind, and he knew he had to try.

A bright blue light flashed where Alphonse's hands met the girl's back. He could almost feel the tissues mending.

 _Heal her,_ he thought calmly, taking deep breaths.

The light disappeared, and Al removed his hands, holding his breath. Zampano gently reached over, examining the wound. After a few suspenseful seconds, the chimera flashed Al with a big grin. "Nice job, kid. You did it."

The boy sighed with relief, examining his hands, which were not only covered with blood, but shaking. He hadn't realized how nervous he'd been until now. He took another deep breath, then turned to one of the other servants. "Inform Emperor Ling about what's happened."

He knew that Ling certainly wasn't going to happy about this, especially since the victim was a handmaiden of one of his sisters. Besides that, ever since he'd become ruler of Xing, he had been doing everything in his power to create a peaceful, happy nation for all his people to live in, and, though he and Al were very good friends to begin with, the one thing they had most in common was that they despised needless violence.

"Yes, sir," the servant bowed and rushed out of the room.

Everyone else stood around for a few seconds, letting their blood pressures go down. Then, a small voice spoke out, "Alphonse..."

Turning back in surprise, Al saw Chen looking weakly at him, her face holding a mixture of both pain and fear.

"Stay still," he warned her, putting his hands on her shoulders. Giving her a small smile, he said, "I was able to close up your wound, but you're far from healed."

But Chen didn't settle down. Her eyes sudden grew wide in realization. "You have to save her...She's going to die. You have to save her, Alphonse!"

The temperature in the room dropped drastically. His smile disappearing, the alchemist asked, "Is Lady Tsubaki in trouble?" He knew that, despite her not being the best master, Chen was actually rather fond and loyal to her mistress.

The servant girl shook her head furiously, tears now filling her eyes. Her expression was the definition of fear. "I tried to stop her, but I couldn't. Please, Alphonse, you have to go now! If you don't, she'll kill..." She suddenly winced in pain, cutting her off.

Al held her down once more. "Just calm down. What are you...?"

"Princess Mei!" the girl shouted in hysterics. "She's going to kill Mei!"

Alphonse went stiff as a board, eyes wide. He certainly hadn't been expecting that. A million thoughts and questions began rushing through his mind. _Mei's in trouble. Who's trying to kill her? Is it the same person who did this to Chen? What in the world is happening? Mei's in trouble, dammit! Go save her!_

All of the others in the room were obviously shocked by this news as well, talking amongst themselves. Jerzo looked his young friend, worried. "Al?"

He ignored him. Staring into Chen's face, he asked in an unintentional growl, "Where is she?"

"Her bedroom..." Chen managed, not deterred by his demeanor, instead looking worried as well. "It was am ambush..."

That was all he needed. He immediately burst out into the halls, running towards Mei's bedroom with Jerzo and Zampano calling out after him.

 _She's gonna be fine. She's probably fought her way out like she normally does. You know she can't be brought down that easily._ All of these things raced through his mind as he ran with all his might. He'd seen Mei fight in countless situations, especially during the whole business with Father. Even without her alkahestry, she was near unstoppable. Chen was a defenseless servant, so it would make sense that she would get hurt that badly from an attacker, but Mei...she was more equipped than that.

After what seemed like an eternity, Al finally reached the hallway he wanted, sprinting to the very end where Mei's room was, only to find the double doors wide open. He quickly prepared himself and charged through the entryway. The room was a complete mess - some of Mei's favorite paintings lay shredded on the ground, her little collection of statues had been knocked from their shelves, and there were multiple dents in the bed frame among other things. This was only a split second observation, though, as his eyes immediately honed in on the figure standing in the middle of the room, who was holding her spear up in the middle of striking position - Mei's older sister and Chen's mistress, Tsubaki. In all honestly, Al was surprised. Chen hadn't mentioned her master being involved, even when he'd brought her up. He was even more surprised, though, when Tsubaki turned to him in obvious rage, lancing her spear at him.

On instinct, the alchemist immediately clapped his hands together, something he felt he'd done millions of times before, and reached for the wall, causing a bright blue light and hurtling the stone forward. Tsubaki, who looked rather tired, was unable to dodge and thrown off her feet. She landed on the other side of the room, completely motionless. Al suddenly felt a little panicked. Even if she'd just tried to attack him from some unknown reason, she was still Ling and Mei's sister, as well as a very successful person in her own right. He'd never forgive himself if he'd...

He took a step forward, ready to tend to her wounds, when he noticed something striking in his peripheral vision, causing him to turn toward the window.

His mind went blank. All of his limbs went slack, yet they were stiff at the same time. His heart seemed to slow down exponentially. He wanted to move, to say something, but his body refused to cooperate.

Mei Chang lay in a bundled heap on the floor, a pool of her own blood growing around her. There was a multitude of cuts and scrapes all around her body, with many tears in her clothing, but what was even more horrifying was the gaping wound in her stomach. A bruise was beginning to show on the side of her head, as if she'd been hit exceedingly hard with something, its purple color contrasting to her paling skin. Laying beside her in her blood were two of her kunai.

For a split second, the whole scene changed. Alphonse was suddenly four years old again, the palace bedroom became the kitchen of his childhood home, the kunai were replaced with dropped fruit, and, instead of Mei, the unconscious form of his dying mother lay at his feet. Then, just as quickly, the memory vanished, leaving only the crippling terror that clenched at his heart.

 _Not again..._ Al thought, his eyes wide with horror. _Please, not again!_

Finally finding the will to move, he launched forward and dropped to his knees in the pool of blood, gently shaking the girl's shoulders. "Mei! Mei, please say something!"

Her head rolled to the side, unresponsive. Hands shaking, he moved her face back upward so she wouldn't take in any of her blood, though the coldness of her face filled him with fear. Moving quickly, he slightly lifted up her shirt to get a better look at her wound. The hole in the princess's stomach was rather large and ragged, the blow having obviously been filled with rage and done with a ragged blade...like Tsubaki's spear.

Alphonse glanced back at the other princess in realization, anger almost consuming his terror, but he quickly pushed it aside. Now wasn't the time.

 _You need to seal up her wound, or she'll bleed to death for sure,_ he told himself, drawing his second alkahestry circle of the day, once again in blood.

Putting his hands to her stomach, he tried to take deep breaths. However, his heart was beating at a million miles a minute, and his breathing was ragged. Not only that, but his hands were shaking uncontrollably, and horrible thoughts were filling up his skull, distracting him: _You're too late. She's going to die. She's going to die because you weren't quick enough. What are you going to tell Ling? What are you going to say to her mother and sisters? You never got to thank her for all she's done, and now it's too late. You'll never see her smile again, or hear her laugh, or see her eyes get all focused when she explains something to you. She's gone..._

"No!" he exclaimed, squeezing his eyes tightly shut. He was _not_ going to let another woman he loved die this way.

The blue light almost erupted from his hands. He thought about Mei and all the memories they'd shared together over the past year with everyone. He thought about all the people, not just him, who would miss her dearly if she were to die. Feeling the tissues and the cells beginning to heal themselves, he tried to transfer all the energy he could into her body.

Finally, the light died, and hesitantly, he pulled his hands away. Putting two fingers to her neck, he anxiously felt for her pulse. His whole being filled with relief when he was able to find one. It was faint, and she was still unbelievable cool, but it was there. She was alive. It was then that he realized that no only was his vision blurry from tears, but there were tears streaming down his face as well. He'd been so caught up in everything that he hadn't noticed he'd begun to cry.

"Al!" Ling's voice echoed from behind him. The boy turned around just in time to see the Emperor of Xing enter the room, along with Lan Fan, Zampano, Jerzo, and a few palace guards. Upon seeing the scene of destruction in front of them, all of their faces morphed with shock and horror. Lan Fan immediately went over to Tsubaki, looking her over and eventually giving Ling a head nod, signalling that the princess was alright. It was then that the party turned their attention to Al and Mei. All three of the men ran forward in terror at the sight of the two of them covered in blood.

"My God, please tell me she's not..." Zampano couldn't even finish his sentence, his voice filled with anguish.

"It's okay," Al assured them, his own voice cracking with overwhelming relief. He looked down at Mei, who now almost looked peaceful in her unconsciousness, and caressed her cheek. "She's alive."

His friends immediately relaxed somewhat, but they still looked incredibly worried. Ling observed the surroundings once more, then fixed Al with a serious look. "What happened?"

* * *

 _God, I'm so hopeless,_ Mei thought, her eyes closed.

It had been two weeks since Tsubaki attacked her, and one week since she'd come to. That entire time, she'd been holed up in her bedroom with her injuries (not her old bedroom, where the attack happened; Ling and Al had insisted upon that). Thankfully, because of a lot of rest and some doses of alkahestry from Alphonse, her wounds had been healing quite nicely. Her head no longer bothered her anymore, and her stomach wound, though still quite sore, now only looked like a tiny scar.

After she had woken up and was able to think properly without her head hurting, Alphonse and Ling were able to fill her in on what exactly had happened. Tsubaki, after being treated for her wounds after a blow from Alphonse's alchemy, had immediately been taken into custody and interrogated by her brother, the Emperor, himself. Her attack, apparently, had been a political statement against Ling and his relationship with the clans of Xing. According to Tsubaki, as well as some other more well-mannered royal siblings, Ling had showed more than enough favoritism toward Mei and the Chang clan, and that infuriated many of their siblings. They believed that since him and Mei had traveled Amestris together, he favored her above all of his other brothers and sisters. Since there was no way for Tsubaki to get close to Ling, she'd decided to attack Mei as a statement to not count out the other clans.

After he had finished explaining this to her, Ling clenched his fists and bowed his head in shame. "It's because of my greediness for everyone to get along and my ignorance that they would all just go along with it that you're in this position. It's because of my poor decisions that you got hurt. It's my fault that you...almost died." He bowed heavily, much too low for an Emperor, and spoke in a cracking voice. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry."

Her heart ached to see her brother in such anguish. The two of them had grown enormously close since returning from Amestris, but had he really shown that much favoritism toward her? She didn't quite think so, but then again, she was coming from a biased viewpoint. She wanted to say something to ease his qualms, but she couldn't find the words. Thankfully, Alphonse had broken the silence.

"It's not your fault, Ling," the alchemist had assured the Emperor, his eyebrows furrowed, "and it's not Mei's either. Even if you had played favorites with the Chang clan, that doesn't excuse Tsubaki's actions in the slightest. She should've just gone to you and spoken peacefully about it instead of ambushing Mei and..."

He stopped himself, his voice having had grown a bit louder and angrier. It was clear that he didn't want to show her how upset he was, but she did see him clench his fists until his knuckles were white.

 _Oh, Alphonse..._ She'd heard that he had been the one to come to her rescue and quickly close up her wounds before she bled to death. Not only that, but he had saved Chen's life as well. She could imagine him coming into her room, having to fight off Tsubaki and see her in a bloody heap. He must have been so scared. Still, she felt pride fill her heart when she'd heard how successfully he'd been able to heal her and Chen's wounds on the spot and under so much pressure. Maybe she wasn't that bad of a teacher after all...

A familiar weight crawled up on her chest, causing her to come out of her thoughts. She opened her eyes and looked down, seeing Xiao Mei looking up at her with concerned eyes. Al and Ling weren't the only ones who harbored guilt about what had happened. Xiao Mei had been out playing in the garden at the time Mei was attacked, but had constantly stayed by her side ever since them. Even though they couldn't speak to each other, she could almost hear her panda sisters guilt ridden apology: _I'm sorry. Out of all the times I had to leave you..._

She smiled, gently scratching the tiny panda's head, causing her to kick her leg a bit. "It's okay. I'm getting better one day at a time."

There was a small knock at her door. "Mei, can I come in?"

Al. Despite everything, her heart leapt a little in her chest, and she did her best to smooth down her probably horrible bed head. "Yeah."

That brilliant head of golden hair appeared from behind the door, grinning sheepishly. "Morning."

She couldn't help but chuckle at his cuteness. He was so shy sometimes. "Morning!"

It was then that she noticed the suitcase in his hands, causing her heart to deflate and her smile to drop somewhat. A little bit of panic seized her. "You're leaving...now?"

The alchemist realized what she was looking at and quickly hid it behind his back. He gave her a gentle smile, but it looked a bit forced. "Not right now. We're waiting until after lunch." It might have been just her, but she could've sworn his face turned a bit red. "I wanted to be able to talk to you a bit...you know...before I say goodbye."

The thought of him, as well as Zampano and Jerzo, leaving was enough to depress her, but she knew she had to be optimistic. Giving the boy a determined smile, which she found to be truly genuine, she said, "It's not goodbye for good, though. My wounds are healing quite nicely. Once I'm completely well, I'll catch up with you guys and meet you in Dalian. You are planning on staying there for a least a month, right?"

Because of Mei getting hurt, her three companions had decided to delay their departure by at least a week. Until a couple days ago, the men had been content with waiting until she was fully healed up, but she immediately reprimanded them. Al was planning to stay in the East for three years before returning home to Amestris, one of which he'd already spent in Xing, and she didn't want him diddling around in the palace for her sake when he could be out exploring the world. So, after a few minutes of heated argument, the four of them had come to an agreement. The three men would leave a week later than scheduled, leaving Mei back at the palace to rest and heal up. As soon as she was okay to travel, she would meet up with them at their first planned stop. However, if, for some reason, Mei didn't meet up with them by the time they were ready to move on, she ordered them to go on and leave her behind, no phony excuses allowed.

Al opened his mouth to say something, but slowly closed it, instead giving her that gentle smile she just melted under. She scooted over on her bed, patting a seat next to her, which he promptly took, taking off his shoes and putting his legs up. For the next few minutes, the two of them sat there in silence, relaxing against the pillows.

"So..." Mei broke the silence. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Oh, uh..." Al rubbed the back of his neck, his cheeks turning a bit red again from embarrassment. Grinning, he told her, "I hadn't really gotten that far. How about you go first?"

She was taken aback for a second, but smiled. "Okay."

What _did_ she want to talk to him about? There were so many things she wanted to say to him, so many things she wanted to ask. Where to start...

"What are you going to miss most about Xing?"

"Hmm..." He didn't look surprised, like he'd thought about this a lot. He stared at the ceiling, his golden eyes swirling. "I guess...the people. I've grown to know so many people here, and I love just about every one of them. All of the servants and guards, the kids down in the village, your family...Well, the nice ones, anyway." His eyebrows furrowed a bit, and she knew he was thinking about Tsubaki. His serious look only lasted a few seconds, though, and he smiled. "I've been able to grow closer to Zampano and Jerzo too. They're almost like cool uncles I never had." He chuckled, then turned his eyes to her. "Then there's you and Ling. It wasn't until I got here that I realized that we really didn't know all that much about each other, since you really didn't spend _that_ much time in Amestris. Still, you guys brought me in and treated me like one of your own - you, especially. You've been so kind to me, Mei, and you've taught me so much about alkahestry and about your country, and through you training me, I've been able to get to know you so much better. I'm really grateful for that."

She could feel her cheeks redden a bit, but, for whatever reason, she didn't feel as flustered as usual. Instead, she felt a warmness spread through her heart. Smiling sweetly at him, she replied, "Me too. I couldn't imagine a better student...or a better friend."

While that last part had been a little hard, seeing as she wished their relationship could be a bit more than that, she really did mean it. She knew that Al could tell this, because both his smile and blush grew a bit. Still, she swore he could hear a bit of hesitation in his voice. "Yeah...same here."

It was then that Xiao Mei, who had been silently watching the two from the edge of the bed, made her presence known, running up and leaping onto Al's shoulder, nuzzling up to him. Al laughed. "Hey! I didn't know you were here."

 _Stupid panda,_ Mei couldn't help but think. _You get to do that without consequences only because you're an adorable little animal._

Xiao Mei always got close to Al just to peeve her off, even though Mei had no real reason to be jealous, with Xiao Mei being a panda and all. Still, her companion always loved to show off, giving her little smirks and sticking her tongue out at her.

"Okay," Al said, interrupting her thoughts. "Now, it's my turn to ask you something."

Mei giggled. "Shoot."

"Hmm..."

And it went on like that for several hours, the two (three) of them just sitting on the bed, asking each other questions, most of which turned silly after awhile, and just talking about all kinds of things. It seemed to ease both of them, allowing them to momentarily forget all that was happening and all that had happened in the past few weeks. They had completely lost track of time, until a servant knocked and entered, saying, "Sir Alphonse, I am to inform you that lunch will be ready shortly."

"Oh..." Al's bright smile that he'd had all morning suddenly dropped, but he managed a small one for the servant. "Thank you. I'll be out in just a minute."

The servant smiled, bowed, and exited. As soon as the door closed, the mood of the room immediately changed. Mei looked at Alphonse, sadness clenching at her heart, but the alchemist simply avoided her gaze, glancing at his suitcase sitting by the bed. After what had seemed like an eternity, he finally sighed and looked at her, forcing a smile. "I guess I'd better head down there."

Mei slightly nodded. She didn't want him to keep Zampano and Jerzo waiting, but, at the same time, she didn't want their conversation to end. Without even thinking or realizing what she was doing, she flung herself at him, engulfing him a hug. He was surprised for a few seconds, but quickly returned it, his strong arms wrapping around her. As he did this, she began to feel tears coming on, though she didn't know why. This wasn't goodbye for good. Hell, this wasn't even a goodbye for that long. She was going to catch up with them in a couple of weeks, so why was she feeling so sad to see him go?

"I wish you were leaving with us," Al told her as they pulled away from the hug, this time giving her a genuine smile, though it was a bit sad.

"Yeah," she agreed, somewhat mumbling. She brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "I'll meet up with you though. Don't forget that."

He smiled for real this time, causing her to as well. They stared at each for a minute, almost as if they were taking each other in like they would never see each other again.

Finally, Al got up off the bed and put his shoes on. He reached for his bag, his hand hesitating for a few seconds, and turned to her, giving her a reassuring grin.

"Well...goodbye, for now at least."

She nodded, trying to hold back the tears that were trying to come out. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her cry. "Goodbye."

He began to walk towards the door at a gait that Mei felt was a bit slow for him, almost like he wanted to stay in the room for as long as possible. However, he only made it about halfway to the door before a little furry ball whizzed off the bed and onto his shoulder. The sudden movement made both him and Mei yelp, and, before they knew it, Xiao Mei had somehow knocked his case out of his hands and had made him sit back on the bed. The boy and girl looked at each other in confusion, then at the panda.

"Xiao Mei, what are you doing?" Mei asked, trying to sound somewhat chastising. "Al has to go. You aren't expecting him to travel all the way to Dalian on an empty stomach, do you?

Her tiny sister ignored her scolding, instead looking at the two of them with a mixture of frustration and annoyance. Using her exaggerated arm movements, the panda pointed at the two of them, then clawed at her own fur on top her head. Translation: _You two are driving me insane!_

This did not help Mei and Al's confusion, so they just continued to stare at the animal. Miming pulling out her fur again, Xiao Mei looked at the princess and signed. Passionately, she pointed at her, then put her hands to her mouth, quickly spreading them out, then jetted her arm out towards Alphonse. It didn't take Mei long to figure out what her sister was trying to convey ( _Just kiss him already!),_ and her face immediately turned into a bright tomato. Her heart managed to skip a few beats as well.

"Xiao!" the princess yelled in embarrassment, completely forgetting that Al was sitting next to her. "You've gone too far this time! I swear sometimes you are the most...!"

"Mei..." Alphonse interrupted. She turned to him, only to see his face bright red as well. He looked at both her and the panda in a state of both confusion and realization.

Somehow, Mei's cheeks managed to become even redder. She quickly looked down, picking at her comforter. In the meantime, she began to babble. "Oh, you know Xiao Mei! She's always doing stuff like this! She just wanted to get a last laugh in before you left! Ha, ha, ha! She's just joking about how I used to have a crush on you back in Amestris...!"

Dammit, why did she say that? Oh, screw it. The whole thing had been blatantly obvious, so much so that even he probably realized it.

"Oh, well! You can't take anything she says seriously, I swear! She's such a stinker, and..."

"Mei!" She immediately stopped, surprised to hear Alphonse chuckling. She looked up to see him looking at her with an amused, yet gentle smile on his face and a soft look in his eyes. His expression reassured her a bit, and she relaxed, though she still blushed at the look he was giving her.

The two of them sat there for a moment, silently still. All the while, Mei's thoughts raced. Should she? No, she shouldn't. If he didn't want her to...but God, she really wanted to...Oh, screw it.

Before she could talk herself out of it, the princess grabbed the boy by his shirt and pulled him closer, her lips meeting his. It was just a small peck, not lasting more than three seconds, but in those three seconds, she couldn't help but think, _Finally._ His lips were just as soft as she'd thought they'd be, so much so that she could get lost in them. However, once those three seconds were over, she finally realized what she was doing, and just about pushed Alphonse away.

"Oh, my God, Al! I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth with wide eyes. She could feel some tears coming back. _God, I've ruined everything._

Alphonse just sat there for a minute, his body rigid in surprise and his wide eyes staring right at her, though she couldn't read what he was thinking at all. The longer the two of them sat there in silence, the more dread filled Mei's heart.

"Al..." she began again, her voice beginning to crack with emotion. She looked down, ashamed. "I'm sorry. I...I wasn't thinking. I just..."

"Mei." The gentle and straightforward tone in his voice took her by surprise. She hesitantly began to look up, but before she had the chance to, Alphonse had already lifted her chin, pulling her in close and...kissing her.

 _Oh._ The princess's eyes widened in total surprise, and she was frozen for a moment. Then, almost immediately, she melted, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him back. She wasn't sure how long the two of them stayed like that - just sitting there, kissing with their arms wrapped around each other - but she would've gladly had it go on forever.

Eventually, though, their lips parted, both of them needing to breathe. Without even flinching, the two of them smiled softly at each other and even leaned in for another kiss, but another knock at the door brought them back to reality. "Sir Alphonse? Mr. Zampano and Mr. Jerzo are waiting for you in the dining hall."

Al flinched a bit at the interruption, but there was still a silly grin on his face. "Tell them I'll be with them in a minute."

"Very well."

The boy and girl were silent as they heard the servant's footsteps disappear down the hall. They then stared at each other for a minute, suddenly bursting into chuckles and giggles. It was then that they noticed that they were still holding onto each other and reluctantly pulled away, looking downward with almost feverish blushes on there faces.

"Mei..."

"Al..."

The two tried to speak at the same time, causing both of them to look surprised and chuckle once more. Mei felt as if she floating on air and a huge weight had been lifting off her shoulders. She no longer felt sad that Al was leaving. In fact, she was excited, even more-so for them being reunited. Feeling determined, she smirked at Alphonse, telling him, "Consider that a going-away present."

The alchemist looked surprised, but smiled sweetly, blushing. "Alright..."

"And...!" Mei quickly added, causing her companion to jump. She felt her blush grow deeper. "When I meet back up with you guys, I expect you to pay me back." A genuine smile crept onto her lips. "Equivalent exchange, right?"

"Mei..." Alphonse looked even more shocked at those words. His face was so funny that she almost chuckled, but she remained firm. She wanted him to know that she was serious - that she really cared about him.

Finally, blush gone, his golden eyes filled with determination and, with a grin, he said. "Right."

And that's where they left it. Planting a small kiss on her forehead, Alphonse got up and, with a determined smile, bid her goodbye. After he left, she stared at the door for a few seconds, almost as if she were expecting him to come back. Slowly, but surely, a silly grin grew on her face, and she bit her lip, trying to get the last taste of his lips. _I kissed him. He kissed me. We kissed._

Suddenly, from quite a ways down the hallway, she could Alphonse's voice shout out triumphantly. "Yes!"

She felt her heart skip a few beats at his outburst. Chuckling, she looked down, twiddling her fingers. "Stupid man."

Looking at the door once more, she whispered, "I love you."

* * *

 **There you go! What did you think? Please favorite and send me a review to tell me what you thought! I love any feedback I can get! Thanks so much for reading!**


	3. First Day Back

**Here's my second little story I have for you guys: First Day Back!**

 **Synopsis: Basically, exactly what the title suggests. Edward has just arrived in Central after his long time in the West, relieved to be in a familiar place and eager to get back home. All he really wants to do is go relax at his hotel, but a little run in with some kids distracts him a bit. This turns out not to necessarily be a bad thing, though...**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Edward examined the station as he got off his train. All around him people were bustling around, trying to catch a cab or make their train on time. Women embraced their husbands who'd just came back from a business trip, children held tight to their toys as their parents hurried them along the platform, and all sorts of pets barked, chirped, and meowed in their cages. Past the ticket booth, the tall brick buildings of Central stood high against a cloudless sky.

The young man couldn't help but smile. Finally, after two and half long years, he was back home.

He took a step forward, and a small jolt went through his back. That long train ride from the Western border had certainly taken its toll on his body.

Edward grit his teeth somewhat. "There's something I _didn't_ miss. Well, the hotel's not that far away. Guess I'll walk it off."

The city streets also hadn't changed much in the time he'd been away. Couples taking their afternoon strolls, an elderly woman walking her dog, kids playing tag down the sidewalks – they were all still there. Edward couldn't help but feel relieved. After traveling to a bunch of countries that were all unknown to him, it was nice to be back in a place that felt familiar.

 _I better call Winry as soon as I check in,_ he thought as he strolled along. _God knows she'll probably beat me with that damned wrench of hers if I don't tell her I'm home._

Despite the painful implications, he still smiled somewhat. He and Winry had somehow been able to keep exchanging letters despite his constant moving around and, while it was certainly nice to talk to her, it wasn't the same as being with her, which he desperately needed at this point. Before he left on his trip, he'd given her a half-assed marriage proposal, which she'd actually (thankfully) accepted. While they'd talked about it a little in their exchanges, they hadn't gone into full detail. Though he'd never admit it, he was excited to get back to her, to see her, and to start planning for the future.

"Come on, guys! Please! Give it back!"

Ed's thoughts were broken by the sound of a helpless-sounding young voice. He looked across the street to see a group of boys gathered around in a park. All of them couldn't have been more than ten, but there was one that was smaller, both in height and gait, than all the rest. This small boy looked at the bigger boys with pleading eyes, almost in tears. "Please! Just give me my book back!"

One of the other boys, who looked like he was holding a textbook of some sort, grinned condescendingly at his smaller peer. "You don't need to yell, Destin. Besides, I'm doing you a favor! No one's ever gonna like you if you keep up with your stupid hobby!"

The bully then looked at the group around him. "What do you say, guys? Should we help Destin out and get rid of the book for him?"

All of the other boys, chuckling evilly, nodded in agreement. The lead boy opened the book and began to tear at some of the pages.

"No! Oscar, stop!" Destin lunged at his bully, but was quickly swatted to the ground by his larger classmate.

Ed had already crossed the street by this point, ready to confront the boys, but as soon as Destin hit the ground, he let out a sharp, "Hey!"

Both bullies and victim jumped at the sudden exclamation and turned toward him, shrinking somewhat at the fear of being scolded by an adult. Edward allowed himself a little pride in this. It was nice to finally be treated with respect for once.

Despite this feeling, he was frowning deeply with his eyebrows furrowed. Turning to Oscar, the leader, he ordered, "Give this boy his book back and apologize."

Oscar, getting over his initial surprise, bravely played the tough guy. He frowned at Edward. "Why should I? You're not my teacher, my brother, or my dad, so I don't have to listen to you one bit!"

"Ever hear of 'Respect your elders?'"

"Yeah, I guess you are pretty old!" Oscar tossed back, making all the other boys laugh. "Besides, why should I respect older people who are stupid like you?"

The group of boys bust out laughing again, but Edward just looked at them with a disappointed pity. These kids' senses of humor were way off. Sighing tiredly, he pulled out his silver pocket watch from his coat, dangling it by the chain in front of the bully's face. "You see this?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Oscar looked surprised by the question, his smirk deflating a bit, but he remained firm. "Your grimy old watch doesn't scare me. Sorry."

Edward smirked evilly at the boys. "Oh, it just means that this stupid, old guy has the authority to arrest you for destruction of private property and assault, as well as your buddies for being your accomplices."

The demeanor of Oscar's little posy immediately changed, the boys exchanging weary and unsure glances at each other. Oscar also looked unnerved by this information, but he still glared at the man. "You don't look like any officer to me."

Ed, bending down so the two of them were eye to eye, spoke in a prideful, somewhat scary tone. "Wanna bet?"

"Oscar…" one of the lackeys spoke up from the back, looking incredibly nervous. "Just let it go. This wasn't really that fun to begin with."

The bully and the alchemist glared at each other for a few more seconds until the boy finally spat, "Fine. Keep your stupid book."

He roughly pushed the book into Edward's hands and quickly walked away, his friends trailing behind him while stealing some glances back. Edward looked at the item in his hands. It wasn't a textbook, but it was certainly thick. It had a brown cover, with the Amestrian flag etched in gold and a title that read, _The History of Amestris and its Military._

Ed raised an eyebrow at the title, surprised that a such a young kid would have this type of book. Regardless, he turned to the small boy, Destin, who was still on the ground, staring at him in astonishment. Holding out his hand and giving him a friendly smile, Ed asked, "You okay?"

"Huh?" Destin came out of his stupor, realizing that he was being offered help. Slowly, he accepted Ed's hand, which pulled him back on his feet. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"I believe this is yours." Ed held out the boy's book, which he reluctantly accepted as well.

"Thank you." The child looked down at his feet awkwardly, never meeting Edward's eyes. Ed couldn't really blame him. It had to have been embarrassing to have someone else come to your rescue.

"Um…" Destin hesitantly looked up, glancing at the watch still dangling in Edward's hand. "Is that one of the pocket watches that the State Alchemists used to have?"

"Hm?" The former State Alchemist was surprised that the kid had an interest in that or even knew what it really was. Still, he smiled. "Yeah, it sure is."

Destin let out a small gasp, his eyes sparkling with curiosity. In a small voice, he asked, "Can I…see it?"

"Uh…yeah. I don't see why not." Edward, a bit confused, handed the pocket watch to the boy, who held it like it was the most fragile thing in the world. The more he stared at, the more Destin's eyes began to sparkle and his mouth grew into a wide grin. He rubbed his thumb over the etched-in dragon.

"It really _is_ a State Alchemist pocket watch! I've never seen one in real life before! It's all scratched up and grimly, though, but I guess that's a given. It's probably been through a lot. How did you get this, mister? The military doesn't really hire a lot of alchemists any more, and they don't even have these watches, so the only way you'd have one is if you used to be a State Alchemist, but you don't look that old. So, how did you…?"

The boy suddenly stopped his rambling, his eyes widening somewhat, as he glanced up at Edward. The young man, though surprised at Destin's gushing, was very amused at how passionate he seemed. However, he jumped a bit when the kid's kind of mad gaze fell upon him.

After staring at his elder for a few more seconds, Destin quickly handed back the pocket watch. "Hold this for a second!"

Edward did as he was told, taking back his watch as the boy opened up his book, furiously flipping through the pages. After a minute or so, he found what he was looking for, promptly pointing at it with his finger. "Aha!"

He held the book to his face, obviously observing something very closely, then glanced back at Ed from over the binding. He continued to look back and forth for a couple minutes, his face gradually growing more astonished. Finally, the boy turned the book toward Edward, asking hesitantly, "This wouldn't happen to be you, is it?"

"Huh?" Edward leaned in closer, looking at the image Destin was pointing at. His eyes widened in surprise. Sure enough, it was. There on the page, in black and white, was a picture of him when he was twelve-years-old at his public instatement as a State Alchemist. Standing next to Fuhrer King Bradley (which Ed tried to ignore) and wearing his ever-famous red coat, his younger self grinned pridefully at the camera. Ed remembered the exact thought that was going through his head at that moment: _Now that that's done, it's time to get Al his body back!_

"Yeah…" the young man managed to answer through his surprise. Suddenly, he realized something. He took the book from the boy's hands, examining the picture now with annoyance. "Wait a minute! No one asked me if it was okay to put my picture in a freaking history book! If they'd chosen a decent one, it wouldn't be as bad, but look at me! I look like a dork! What the hell!?"

"So, it really is you!"

Destin's exclamation broke through Edward's thoughts. He turned back to the boy, who was staring at him with the widest eyes and biggest smile he'd ever seen. Beginning to bounce up and down, he began to ramble once more.

"You're Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist! You were the youngest State Alchemist ever! Did you know that? I've read a lot of stuff about you! Not in that book though; it only talks about you a little bit, but I have a whole lot of other books! They say that your younger brother used to walk around with you wearing a _huge_ suit of armor." He stretched out his arms to emphasize his words. "Is that true? And…and what was it like being a State Alchemist? I bet people asked for your autograph all the time and…!"

"Whoa! Whoa!" Ed chuckled as he was finally able to interrupt the kid. He handed Destin the book again, smiling. "So, you're a fan of mine, I'm guessing?"

Destin nodded furiously, eyes bright. "Yes, sir! I know about all the cool things you did, like when you took on that one Ishvalan serial killer guy and…and when you freed those people in Youswell from that crooked mine head!"

"That so?" Ed felt a little uncomfortable having Scar still being called a serial killer and even having Yogi being referred to as crooked. Still, he smiled in amusement at the boy's passion. "Well, then, I'm glad I was passing by at just the right time."

"I'll say!" Suddenly, Destin's smile dropped. He looked down at the ground, clutching his book to chest. "Oscar and those other guys…they make fun of me for liking history and all the stuff about State Alchemists. They say that it doesn't matter anymore, so it's just lame, and that if I didn't read so much, they might actually hang out with me. I…"

Edward frowned as the boy began to choke up.

"I don't have a lot of friends, and I want them to like me, but…." He stopped, clutching his book tightly as he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to hide his oncoming tears.

"Hey." Ed knelt down and put his hand on top of Destin's head. This startled the boy, causing him to look at his idol questioningly. Speaking gently, the alchemist said, "I get where you're coming from. Everyone wants to feel like they're part of a group and stuff, but if they're trying to keep you from doing what you love, then that's not a group that you should be a part of. Besides, history is probably the most important thing to know in the world. Without it, none of us would be able to learn from our mistakes, and we wouldn't be able to advance from the accomplishments of those who came before us." Edward smiled assuringly. "So, don't you dare let those boys tell you what you can and can't like, and don't let the temptation to be accepted change who you are, okay?"

Destin stared at him for a second, but quickly straightened up, giving a serious nod. "Okay."

The deep, reverberating sound of the city hall bell rang through the air, startling the two of them. Edward pulled out his watch, looking at the time. "Jeez, it's five already?"

"Five!?" Destin suddenly looked panicked. "Oh, man! I'm totally late! My mom's probably really worried!"

"Hey, don't sweat it," Edward assured him, putting his watch back in his pocket. "Tell you what: I'll call for a taxi, and the two of us can ride to your house together. It's kind of my fault you're late anyway, so I can explain to your parents what happened. Sound like a plan?"

The boy, his face somewhat red with embarrassment, nodded. "Okay."

* * *

After a short, ten-minute taxi ride, the two found themselves at an apartment complex near the center of the city. Its seven stories where built with what seemed like brand new bricks and the cleanest windows Ed had probably ever seen. Destin led him through the small lobby and to the elevator, where the small boy pressed the button for the fourth floor. Once at their wanted story, they walked halfway down the hallway, where Destin stopped in front of a door, sighing before opening it.

Right inside the walkway was the living room: very modest, with a small tan couch, black recliner, glass coffee table, and a well-kept radio and telephone. There was a small hallway on the opposite side of the room, which Edward assumed led to the bedrooms and such. A small doorway also lay in the left wall of the room. A few seconds after Destin closed the door, a woman appeared through said doorway. She looked to be in her early thirties, with short and curly strawberry blonde hair and deep green eyes. Over her floral dress she wore an apron, as she was presumably in the middle of cooking supper. Upon seeing Destin, her worried expression turned into relief.

"Destin, thank goodness," she came forward, kneeling and hugging her son tightly. "I was starting to get worried." She then pulled away, now owning the "chastising mom" face. "What kept you so long?"

The boy glanced down at the floor, embarrassed by his mother's smothering and guilty about making her worry. In a small voice, he said, "Mom, this is…"

It was then that the woman noticed Edward. She stood up, surprised, yet somewhat tired. "I'm sorry, sir. He wasn't causing you any trouble, was he?"

"Oh, no! Not at all!" The alchemist shook his head, giving her a smile. "In fact, I'm the one who should be apologizing. I must say that it's partially my fault that he's late."

"Oh?" Now, she looked even more surprised.

"Mom! This guy is…!" Destin, now getting over his shyness, seemed excited to tell his mother about his interesting new friend.

"Destin, dear, go wash up before dinner. Your dad will be home soon."

He looked like he was about to say something else, but he melted under his mother's gentle, but commanding expression. He slightly nodded, turning and running down the hallway before disappearing into one of the rooms.

"I owe you an explanation," Edward said politely to the woman, rubbing the back of his neck. He then proceeded to tell her about her son's little quarrel with Oscar and his buddies. She didn't look shocked, but her lips were pursed in a deep frown, and her eyes filled with a mother's pain.

"Those boys…" She shook her head, looking disappointed. "They've been picking on Destin ever since the new year started. It was small, at first: little taunts and stuff like that. His father and I told him to just ignore them, that they were just being immature and that they would eventually stop. Then, a couple weeks ago, he came home with bruises on his arms, and…" She bit her lip and sighed. "I called all of their parents after that, and Destin told us that they stopped, but apparently not…"

"Your son's a pretty bright kid," Ed told her, smiling. "Pretty tough, too. I don't think he'll let those punks get to him anymore. In fact, the reason he's late is because me and him had a pretty heated conversation about that book he had."

"Is that so?" She managed a smile at this – a sweet smile of a parent, one that kind of reminded Edward of his own mother. "He's been into history for a long time now. One day after school, he just came in and told me all about democracy and all the other stuff he'd learned about in class that day. He's been obsessed ever since."

The young man chuckled. "Doesn't surprise me. I found my passion the same way when I was about his age."

"We all do, it seems. Anyway, thank you for bringing him home, Mister…"

"Elric," he supplied.

"Elric?" She raised her eyebrows, coming upon a realization. Smiling brightly, she exclaimed, "Of course! I thought you looked familiar!"

Edward looked at her with a mix of surprise and confusion. "I'm sorry. Have we met before?"

She raised her hand, grinning good-naturedly. "I wouldn't expect you to remember. It was only a little thing a few years ago. You helped to repair my balcony after it had collapsed in an earthquake."

Now that he thought about it and really looked at Destin's mother, he began to have a vague memory of the event. If he wasn't mistaken, it was during the whole business with Father, but before everything had gotten too insane. He remembered looking up from the street to the younger woman grinning down at him, shouting, "Thank you, Mr. Alchemist!"

"Now that you mention, I do remember you somewhat," he told her, smiling. "I'm glad I was able to be of assistance."

"Yes, well, it was certainly a nice bragging right for me against Destin. Once he started reading all about you, I told him about that, and he immediately thought I was the coolest mom ever." She chuckled. "I guess that's a little bonus. No wonder he seemed so excited to introduce you."

"It was surprising to me that he even knew who I was. Still, seeing his eyes brighten up like they did and to hear him ramble about everything he knew…" He sighed, smiling somewhat. "It was just what I needed after my long trip."

"A trip? May I ask where you went?"

"Ah, I've spent the past two and a half years wandering around in the West researching what different types of alchemy there are in the world besides the ones we use here in Amestris."

Destin suddenly popped up from behind his mother, making both adults jump. Having apparently heard some of the conversation, he asked, "Really!? Did you learn anything?"

"Quite a bit actually," Ed answered, chuckling off his being startled, "but it's a little much for you to probably understand, buddy."

He tussled the boy's hair affectionately as some memories of his journey came to his mind. He remembered reuniting with Julia Crichton and the people of Milos after many years, learning more about their healing abilities and ability to harness the power of magma. Then, there was the alchemy of Daheim, whose power seemed more atmospheric than terrestrial; the "benders," as the wielders called themselves, insisted that their abilities came from air pressure, electrical currents from thunderstorms, and stuff like that. Ed had trouble understanding some of it, but he took plenty of notes nonetheless.

"My brother's been traveling in the East too," the alchemist added, smiling proudly at the thought of his younger sibling. "We're hoping to swap notes once he's home, so maybe we can find some kind of breakthrough that could really help people. We're not entirely sure what that will be, but we have faith that we'll find something."

Edward wondered how Alphonse was doing. If he remembered correctly, his little brother had been planning to stay in the East for three years max, so it would probably be a couple more months before he finally came home. Ed wondered about all the things he'd seen and learned and if he'd managed to stay out of trouble, though he really wasn't one to talk. Anyway, Al had the Frog and Crocodile (Ed's semi-affectionate nicknames for Zampano and Jerzo) with him. Surely, nothing could go wrong there.

"Well, that definitely sounds exciting," Destin's mother smiled genuinely. "You're probably exhausted and hungry after that long train ride. Would you like to stay for dinner?"

"Oh! Can you, Mr. Elric!?" Destin jumped up and down excitedly, tugging on Edward's arm. "Please! _Please_ eat with us!"

The young man smiled at the woman with a mixture of awkwardness and gratefulness, her son still pulling on his arm. "I wouldn't want to intrude…"

"Nonsense! There's plenty of food to go around! Plus," She winked, grinning," I think Destin's taken quite the liking to you."

Edward looked down at the boy once more, his pleading eyes staring into his very soul. Finally, he sighed, tussling Destin's hair once more. "Well, if you insist."

"YES!"

* * *

"Thanks for everything, Mr. Elric!"

Ed looked up from his spot on the sidewalk to see Destin hanging out of the kitchen window, grinning and waving his hand wildly. "Have a safe trip home!"

The alchemist gave him a wild smile in return, raising his hand in goodbye. "Will do! See you around!"

After the final goodbye, Ed turned and made his way down the street. It was early in the evening at this point, and he was completely exhausted. The next half hour seemed to go by in a blur; before he knew it, a taxi had dropped him off at his hotel, he'd signed in, and he was in his room, plopping down on his bed with an exasperated sigh.

As he took off his overcoat and shoes and begun to relax a bit, the telephone on the bedside table caught his attention.

 _Oh, yeah,_ he thought, walking over. _I meant to call Winry._

He sat down on the bed, picking up the phone and telling the operator the correct number. The next few seconds went by like an eternity, each ring blasting in his ears. He suddenly felt nervous and excited all at the same time. It'd been so long since the two of them had actually spoken to one another. He'd never realized how much he yearned to hear her voice again.

Finally, that beautiful, familiar voice rang from the other side of the line, sounding a little tired. "Rockbell Automail and Mechanics. This is Winry."

Edward smiled and, not even putting in a "hello," playfully said, "Guess who's back?"

There were a few seconds of silence, but he could've sworn he heard a small gasp on the other end. Then, after a couple more moments of silence, Winry sighed, gently saying, "Dummy. So, you're finally back in the country, huh?"

Ed chuckled. He could practically hear the soft smile in her voice. He'd actually gotten good at gauging those types of things. "Yep! I got here in Central this afternoon, and don't worry. I'll be hopping on a train for Risembool first thing tomorrow morning so you don't have to go nagging at me to hurry up."

"That's good." She responded, her voice not showing any annoyance at his nagging comment. This surprised him somewhat. "You didn't have any trouble getting back did you?"

"Nah! It was all smooth sailing."

"That's a relief. Sometimes it takes all I can muster not to sit around and worry about whether you've gotten yourself into a mess or not." She said this genuinely, but he detected hints of irritation in her voice. No doubt she was flashing back to all the times he and Al had come home all beaten up and in pieces. He felt a little guilt rise up in his chest; he'd never once thought that him being away would make her worry so much. His feelings we're interrupted, however, when his fiancé spoke again, her irritation now apparent.

"Wait a minute. You said you got to Central this afternoon, so why are you just _now_ calling? Being an automail engineer is tough, tiring work, you know, and I honestly don't think you could've called any later."

"Yeah, I missed you too…" Edward sighed sarcastically. He hadn't expected the whole conversation to be all sincere anyway. Still, he knew she was right. God only knew how many all-nighters she was probably going on at this point. Rubbing his eyes, he said, "It's kind of a long story…Well, actually it's not. It's just…" He sighed again, chuckling at his tiredness. "Sorry. I'm just exhausted from that train ride. I'm sorry I'm calling so late. I should've known better."

"Oh, Ed…" Winry murmured, a trace of guilt in her voice. "No, you're fine. I'm glad you called. Knowing me, I'd probably be mad if you'd just called me in the morning instead." She chuckled. "I guess I'm hard to please."

"Damn right, you are," the alchemist didn't even hesitate to agree with her. He smirked and blushed a bit, glad that she couldn't see him. "It seems that I'm still keen on marrying you though. I guess I just like things complicated."

"You're discovering this just now?"

The two of them let out some small laughs, which were followed by a small silence, the two of them just taking in the other's presence on the other side of the line.

"Winry?" She didn't answer. "Winry?"

"Thanks for calling, Ed. I'm really glad you're home." The small, gentle smile in her voice was back. She chuckled. "We both probably really need sleep right now. You can tell me everything tomorrow, okay?"

He smiled. "I'm not home yet, but I should be sometime tomorrow afternoon, hopefully before supper." His stomach rumbled, his home cooked meal finally digesting. "God, I'm really in the mood for some of Granny's stew!"

"I'll make sure she had some ready for you when you get here."

"Sounds good to me."

A couple more seconds of silence.

"Ed?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

The young alchemist felt himself blush a bit. They'd exchanged "I love you's" in their letters to each other, but, even though they were engaged, they'd never actually said it out loud to each other. Needless to say, he was taken aback. For some reason, though, it didn't last for long, and he found himself smiling at the ground. "Yeah, I love you too."

"I should probably head to bed now."

"Same here."

"Be careful coming home, alright?"

"Gotcha, and have that stew waiting for me."

A tired chuckle. "Will do. Sleep well."

"Yeah. Good night, Winry."

"Good night, Ed."

Then, they hung up. A loud yawn escaped Edward's mouth, his eyelids suddenly ten times heavier than they'd been a second before. Not even taking off his traveling clothes, he took his hair out of the ponytail and snuggled under the covers. As the former Fullmetal Alchemist stared at the ceiling, slowly losing consciousness to sleep, he smiled.

"Man, it's good to be home."

* * *

 **There you go! I hoped you guys liked it! If you did, please follow and/or favorite me and/or this story, if you haven't already. If you have, then gracias! Also, please leave a review to tell me what you think!**

 **Have a nice day!**


	4. Homecoming

**Yay! I had a lot of fun writing this one!**

 **Summary: Once again, it's basically exactly as it sounds. We've seen Ed returning back to Amestris, and now it's time to see Al's homecoming, only in a little more detail - from saying goodbye to friends to reuniting with family. Let's see how it all goes down!**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Well…I guess this is goodbye for now, kid." Zampano rubbed the back of his neck, smiling nostalgically. The three of them stood just inside the entrance of the Central train station, having just arrived not ten minutes ago. All around them, the common hustle and bustle of the place clambered all around them – students going on a school trip, couples bidding each other farewell, families heading home from vacation. Just outside the gate, the Central skyline rose prominently into the sky. Alphonse gazed at the sight for a second, the same one his brother had witnessed a couple months before on his own return to Amestris.

The young man then turned to his two friends. The three of them had grown immensely close over their three years in the East and, with Mei, they had kind of formed a little makeshift family during their travels. Zampano and Jerzo were pretty much like the fun, crazy uncles that he'd never had, and he felt his heart sinking at the realization that this was really the end of it all. For a long time, it seemed like their journey would never end, yet here they were.

Jerzo smiled at the alchemist as well. "You make sure to tell Ed and Ms. Winry we said hello, okay?"

He nodded somewhat, managing a small smile. "Sure. Same to you and your families."

The mention of the chimeras' families seemed to punch Al right in the gut. His smile dropped, and he glanced at the ground, feeling ashamed. The thought had been plaguing him ever since they'd arrived back in Xing a couple months ago, but he'd never been able to get up the courage to say anything to them about it. Now that they were parting ways, he knew he had to say something, or he'd regret.

"I…I'm sorry, you guys…" he said quietly, though he knew with their advanced hearing, they could hear him just fine. "I wish we could've found a way to get you back to normal. Maybe if we'd just gone a little farther…"

"Hey. Don't you go starting that." Jerzo chastised, causing Al to look up. The two men, though there were traces of sadness in their eyes, gave him genuine, wide grins.

The frog chimera continued, "Sure, it kind of sucks that we weren't able to get our original bodies back, but we've decided that we can live with that."

Zampano nodded in agreement. "These bodies certainly have their perks, and it's not like they really hinder us from doing any normal things. Besides, our families accept us for who we are, unless something's changed in the last few years, but even so, that's good enough for us."

"That's right. So, no more feeling guilty for our sakes, Alphonse. You got that?"

Al stared at the two of them for a second, surprised by their being so content. However, after seeing their genuine faces, he smiled once more, though there was still a bit of guilt weighing him down. "Okay." Changing the subject, he asked them, "You two are still coming to Brother and Winry's wedding, right?"

"Hell, we wouldn't miss that for the world!" Jerzo's wide smile only grew.

"That's right! You know we never pass up a chance for free food!" Zampano added jokingly. The three of them laughed.

"Also," the crocodile chimera continued sincerely, "don't forget that we'll all see each other again – you, us, and Mei."

Al, smiling determinately, nodded. "Right. And Ling, too."

"Nah, he's not cool enough to hang with us," Jerzo argued, and the men laughed again. "Anyway, Zampano's right. Let's not go treating this like none of us are going to see each other again."

"Yeah," the alchemist chuckled. He gave them his usual gentle smile, with a hint of sadness in there as well, and looked down at the ground, embarrassed. "Still, I'm really gonna…miss you guys."

The chimeras looked surprised at the boy's words. Alphonse was always very sincere and didn't hide his emotions all too often, but they still hadn't been expecting this. Realizing that they were about to become emotional, the two men quickly looked away in different directions, trying to hide their reactions.

"God dammit!" Zampano wiped the tears from his eyes, blinking quickly. "I think some dirt flew into my eyes after that gust just now!"

"Sorry to hear that!" Jerzo played along, squinting his eyes. "Would you look at the bird! It's just about fatter than I am!"

Al stared at the men in confusion for a few seconds, but quickly caught on to what was going on. Chuckling softly, tears in his eyes as well, he grabbed his two friends by the shoulders and pulled them into a little group hug. "Thank you for everything, guys. I couldn't have asked for better company."

The men, although surprised at first, quickly returned his embrace. Once they all pulled back, Jerzo ruffled Al's hair affectionately. "Don't go causing any trouble on your way back home, 'kay?"

"And we better get those wedding invitations pretty soon," Zampano added, smirking.

"I'm not promising anything, but I'll try my best," he assured them. The sound of a large bell reverberated throughout the station, signaling the next train was about to board. Sighing, Al picked up his suitcase. "That's my que."

"An all-nighter. I pity you," Zampano looked at him sympathetically. "Why aren't you waiting till tomorrow again?"

Al smiled playfully at them. "I figure Brother, Winry, and Granny will appreciate an early morning surprise."

"Well then," Jerzo clapped his young friend on the shoulder, "we'll see you around, Alphonse Elric."

"Mm. See you around." He picked up his suitcase and headed towards the platform, Zampano and Jerzo wildly waving goodbye to him, which he gladly returned. Just when he was about to board the train, he looked back again, and his friends were gone. The sight made him sad, but, at the same time, he felt jittery with excitement. He stepped into the carriage with a smile on his face. _Time to head home._

* * *

It was early the next morning when he was woken up by the train's whistle as it made its way into the tiny platform at Risembool. As the engine slowed, Al glanced out the window at the vast, green valley dotted with small farmhouses, all of which were being illuminated by the sun slowly immerging above the far horizon. Without realizing it, a wide grin appeared on his face.

After exiting the train, he started to make the ten-minute trek to the Rockbell house on the other side of the village. Being around seven in the morning, the only people who were up were the local farmers, old family friends, who were tending to their fields, but they were much too far away or too engrossed with their work to really notice the returning boy. This was fine with Al, though. He felt like he needed to prepare himself.

Finally, the oh-so familiar house appeared on the horizon, its bright yellow siding greatly standing out with the light of the dawn shining on it. Al smiled at the sight, his heart warm and his hands somewhat shaky. It was so hard to believe that it'd been three years since he'd been home. It felt like it'd only been yesterday, but, at the same time, it felt like an eternity. Three years since he'd seen his brother and Winry and Granny. Three years since he'd smelled the ripe oil and off-the-press metal from all Winry's projects. Three years since he'd had any of Granny's cooking. Three years since he'd petted Den. Three years since he and his brother sparred in the backyard.

If he remembered correctly, his family shouldn't have been expecting him for another month or so. At least, that's what he'd put in his last letter to them, and, at the time, he'd meant it. As time went on, though, and the closer he got to going home, he yearned more and more to see all of their faces again. The whole thing had been quite tearing, as he'd wanted to stay in Xing a little longer because of a certain someone, who'd immediately insisted that he head home:

 _"_ _Al…" Mei shook her head in exasperation, though there was a loving smile on her face. He'd just told her about his little dilemma. She gently held his hands in hers. "Your family hasn't seen you in_ years, _and you've spent all that time over here – with me. They probably miss you now more than I ever could, and I know you miss them too. So, go."_

 _Al sighed, feeling a bit better from her words, though he still felt bad. "I guess you're right…"_

 _She smirked. "Of course, I am." She kissed him, ran a hand through his hair, and said, "Just go home, you stubborn man."_

He and the guys had left a week after that, arriving in Amestris a good four days later after traveling through the hell that was the Great Desert. Al's heart still felt a little heavy from leaving Xing, which had pretty much become a second home to him, but he reminded himself that Mei was right. Now, as he stood in front of the house that had sheltered him for most of his life, the full weight of how much he had missed his true home became apparent. Besides, he'd see Mei in a couple of months at Ed and Winry's wedding. Though, whether she would stay with him or he go back with her was another dilemma entirely…

The young alchemist furrowed his eyebrows, but his thoughts were soon interrupted by a large, black creature immerging through the front doorway. He only had about two seconds to comprehend this, though, as he was quickly tackled to the ground, his face becoming wet with saliva.

"Den!" He tried to defend himself from the dog's violent affections, but to no avail. Den whined, panted, and licked him in delight, overwhelmed with happiness at the familiar smelling boy that had been missing for so long. "Okay! Okay, boy! I missed you too!"

He laughed out loud as he slowly managed to sit up, his canine friend still jumping and licking him with joy. He scratched at Den's back, then held his head in both hands, ruffling up his fur affectionately. "How've you been?"

"You're home a bit early, Alphonse."

Al jumped, startled by the voice, but only for a second. He turned toward the steps, smiling sweetly. "Yeah. Sorry, I meant to call."

"Nothing to be sorry about, my dear." Pinako took a puff of her pipe, blowing the cloud of smoke into the air. She smiled at the boy – the kind of smile only Granny could give – and said, "Come on in. I was just fixing up breakfast."

* * *

"Brother and Winry are still asleep, I'm guessing?" he asked as he passed her the jar of milk for the eggs. He hadn't been able to stop smiling since he'd walked through the door.

The old woman nodded as she turned up the heat on the stove. "Winry's been working hard on an arm for a high-paying customer who lives in Central. She's been getting more attention from customers in the bigger cities lately. It takes all Ed and I have to pull her away from that desk of hers and make her go to bed. No doubt she's exhausted." Pouring the milk in, she crudely added, "Now, Ed – he's just a lazy ass."

Al laughed. "Nice to know things haven't changed too much."

It seemed to Al that Granny hadn't changed at all in the time he'd been away. She still wore the same little green dress and apron, with her circular glasses and grey hair in a bun. It didn't even seem to him that she looked any older than the last time he'd seen her, and it was certainly clear that her sarcastic, crude nature had stayed intact.

"It's certainly no surprise that your hollering and Den's barking didn't wake them up. Those two could sleep through a tornado and not know what hit them." She stirred up the eggs a bit, then set the spatula down. She looked over at her adoptive grandson and, putting in her pipe in her mouth once more, smiled. "You haven't changed much at all yourself, except for maybe that deep voice box of yours."

"Yeah…" he smiled cheekily as he rubbed the back of his neck, somewhat embarrassed. His voice was always the first thing people noticed nowadays.

 _It's better than be looked at funny for "wearing" a suit of armor, though,_ he reminded himself.

"Well, I have to admit it fits better than your voice did before." She turned back to the stove, turning the eggs over. "It seems both you and your brother are grown men now…There we go!"

She flipped the eggs over a final time, finishing them to where they were golden brown. She then looked at Al, smirking a bit and winking. "That about does it. Why don't you go ahead and take a seat at the table? I'll go wake those two sleeping beauties."

Immediately getting what she was implying, he grinned excitedly. "Alright."

As he headed into the dining room, Al could hear Granny tapping her pipe loudly on the bannister and shouting upstairs, "Ed! Winry! Breakfast!"

He sat down in the chair furthest away from the door, making sure they would see him at the last minute. As he folded his shaking hands on the table, he realized how both excited and nervous he really was. He loved Granny with all his heart, but seeing Edward and Winry after so long was something entirely different. Not only was he excited to see their faces when they turned the corner and saw him, but he couldn't wait to talk with Ed for hours on end about all they had learned on their respective journeys and to hear Winry ramble on and on about what projects she was working on, which he never really understood too much but enjoyed all the same. He wanted to see their smiles so badly. Just like old times…

In the other room, he heard Pinako, who had returned to the stove, say, "Good morning, Winry."

There was a wide, long yawn, followed by the a very tired-sounding reply from his childhood friend, the familiarity of her voice making Al somehow relax and stiffen at the same time. "Morning…"

"Your coffee's already on the table," her grandmother informed her nonchalantly. She was definitely a good actor, though Al already knew that. "Just go ahead and sit down. I know what you'll probably want, so I'll bring you a plate."

"Yeah. Thanks…"

It was then that the girl – or, rather, young woman – came through the threshold of the dining room, rubbing her eyes tiredly. Al's smile grew a bit wider at the sight of her. Winry certainly hadn't changed either since he'd seen her last. Her long blonde hair was suffering from chronic bed-head, all tangled up and hanging all over the place, and she wore her standard baggy T-shirt and striped pajama pants that she normally slept in. She leaned against the doorway for a minute, still dizzy from just having woke up, rubbing her eyes some more. Then, as she removed her hands, the two of them locked eyes.

The girl stared at him blankly for a second or two, her newly awoken brain trying to process what she was actually seeing, then her eyes widened a very considerable amount. She stayed in that position, just staring at him, for a good thirty seconds.

Al chuckled, smiling brightly. "Hi."

His greeting seemed to break her out of her little trance. Her mouth grew into a wide smile, and her eyes filled with tears. "Al!"

He quickly got up from his seat to meet her, which was a good thing, because she immediately had her arms around him, embracing him tightly, which he gladly returned.

"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed in delight, her voice cracking with emotion. She buried her face in his shoulder. "You're back!"

He chuckled again, becoming a bit emotional himself. He hugged her tighter "Yeah."

"When did you get here!?"

"About thirty minutes ago," he told her, pulling away from the hug. Smiling brightly at her, he said, "I've been on a train all night."

"Oh, my God, Al…" She chuckled, wiping some tears from her eyes. She looked him over for a few more seconds, then flung herself into a hug again. "You dummy…"

From the kitchen, the young man heard Pinako speak again, "Morning, Ed."

"Morning…" The voice of Al's brother sounded just as irritated as it did tired. After a quick pause, Ed whined, "What's the deal, Granny? It's, like, 7:30!"

"You've slept in plenty these last few weeks," the old woman retorted. "Besides, there's some chores I'd like you to do around the house today."

Edward's groan was very much apparent, even from the other room. "Come on! I'm not your slave, Beansprout Lady!"

Ignoring the comment about her height for once, Granny simply replied, "As long as you live under this roof, you are."

There was another short pause, followed by a sigh. "Guess I'm screwed then."

"Ed!" Winry turned toward the door, grinning widely. "Come here!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming…" It was then that the former Fullmetal Alchemist appeared in the doorway, rubbing his eyes as his fiancé had done not a minute before. He also looked no different than Al remembered, wearing a black tank top with sweatpants and his golden hair in a ponytail. "Geez, Winry. It's too damn early to be yelling at me…"

The man quickly cut himself off, though, when he actually looked at the scene before him, comprehending it much faster than Winry had. Eyes wide, Edward stared at his younger brother in complete shock. It was quiet for a few seconds until the older Elric finally managed to mumble, "Alphonse…"

After hearing his brother say his name so fondly after such a long time, Al laughed a bit in happiness, tears welling up in his eyes. Somehow, his smile grew even wider, and, voice cracking a bit with emotion, he said, "It's been a while, Brother…"

His little brother's name for him caused Edward to straighten a bit, as if he were finally piecing together that this was, in fact, real. A couple more seconds passed by before his surprised expression melted into a fond smile, the one of a loving older sibling. Hanging his head a bit and chuckling, the former alchemist muttered, "Oh, you bastard…"

Both Al and Winry let out small laughs at this comment, still blinking tears from their eyes. Ed stood back up, and the two brothers met halfway across the room, hugging each other tightly. Patting his brother on the back, Ed said, "Welcome home, Al."

The young man's cheeks hurt so much from smiling, but couldn't make himself stop. "Good to be back."

* * *

"Xing sounds like such a beautiful country," Winry mused. The four of them had been sitting at the table for a while now, first talking about Al's journey back and now about the great Eastern country itself. She smiled at the younger Elric. "Next time you go, you should take me with you."

Al smiled, "If you guys want, I'll take all of you. I know Ling, Lan Fan, and Mei would be happy to have you visit."

"Sounds good to me," Ed nodded in agreement, smiling comfortably at them. Al could tell that the two of them were thinking the same thing. All of them just sitting around and talking – it felt so familiar, so _real,_ and that fact made them happy beyond belief. After traveling so long in foreign territory, it was nice for things to be back to normal.

"Oh, yeah!" Winry turned to Al once more. "How are those three doing anyway?"

"Honestly, I don't think they or the country could be better off. Ling's been making a lot of changes since he's become emperor. There's been a few who oppose his reforms, but, for the most part, he's pretty popular with both the royals and the public." Al chuckled a bit, thinking of all the nights when their group – that being him, Mei, Zampano, Jerzo, Ling, and Lan Fan – would just sit around and talk or play games. "He thankfully hasn't let all the power go to his head, though, and I can assure you he's really no different than he was five years ago. Lan Fan hasn't changed at all either – watchful as a guard dog, but she's really sweet when she wants to be."

"Well, that's good to hear…" Ed took a sip of his coffee, but he suddenly perked up a bit, as if he'd just remembered something. Setting his cup down, he turned to his brother with a teasing smirk on his face. "What about Miss Mei Chang? She's the one who trained you in alkahestry, right? You guys must have spent a _lot_ of time together."

Alphonse rolled his eyes a bit, though he was trying to hide the little blush that was coming up on his face. "Well, yeah. That's a given." He chuckled a bit, again trying to hide his slight redness. "Don't tell me you're still thinking about me and her getting together."

"Come on, Al! She was obviously head-over-heels for you when they were over here, and towards the end of it all, I could tell you started to like her a bit too! Don't lie!"

"As a _friend,"_ Al retorted, which had been the truth until he'd actually gone to Xing.

"That relationship can start to grow eventually," Winry told him, smiling lovingly a bit at Edward as she did so. A smirk appeared on her lips as well. "So, no change in the relationship status?"

Al looked at her, shocked. "Not you too!"

Her smirk only grew – the smirk of a woman who knew that she was going to win. "You're looking a bit red, Al. Also, you didn't answer my question."

The younger Elric brother felt helpless, looking between his somewhat malicious-looking brother and soon-to-be sister-in-law. Glancing down the table, he asked for help. "Granny…"

Pinako cut up a piece of sausage on her plate, promptly eating it. Looking straight forward, she replied, "I think it would be nice if you had a woman in your life, Al. I don't see what your problem is."

 _Even Granny…_ He stared at her incredulously. Eventually, though, his face melted into a smile, and he sighed. Guess there was no getting out of this. They would have to find out sometime anyway, but he wished he could've pulled their legs a little longer. Laughing a bit, he said, "Fine. I guess you caught me."

Ed and Winry's smirks disappeared, being replaced with looks of surprise and confusion. "Wait…huh?"

Al chuckled once more, gratified that he could at least throw them off a bit.

"Wait a minute, Al…" Ed stared at his brother, eyes a bit wide in what almost looked like mortified shock. "You're saying that you…that you and Mei…"

Al smirked at his brother with a raised eyebrow, but didn't say anything. The other three at the table continued to stare at him for what seemed like a pretty long time.

"NO WAY!"

Before the younger Elric could even react, the other boy and girl were right next to his chair, completely disregarding his personal space. Eyes still wide in shock, the two of them bombarded him with questions, slowly tipping his chair back

"You're saying that you actually made the moves on her!? I was mostly just kidding!" Edward exclaimed.

"When did you start realizing you liked her!? If you'd told me in your letters, I could've really helped you out!" Winry seemed more excited than shocked.

"Wait, did you actually _kiss_ her!? Like, _kiss_ kiss her!?"

"How did you tell her!?"

"If you both would get out of my face, I might actually tell you!" Al yelled over them, eyes wide a bit from both their shouting in his face and the fear that he might fall backwards. "Can you _please_ put me down?"

The two assailants suddenly realized what they'd been doing and promptly backed off, sitting down in their own seats. Al sighed in exasperation, running a hand through his hair and groaned, "Geez, I thought you guys would be a little surprised, but this is pushing it."

"Sorry." Winry smiled awkwardly at him, but only for a second, as it quickly turned sincere. "This _is_ quite the surprise, though."

"No kidding," Edward looked at his younger sibling, smiling a bit as well. "No offense, little brother, but it's honestly a little hard for me to picture you with a girl, even if it is Mei."

"I guess that goes for both of us, then." Al managed a smile as well. "I think it's still gonna take me a while to get used to you and Winry being together."

"Better get used to it quick. I _am_ going to be your sister in a couple months," said girl warned with a smirk.

Al chuckled. "And I couldn't be happier of that fact. It's still a bit weird, though."

It certainly was. During his and his brother's time in the military, Al felt as if their childhood with Winry had been an eternity beforehand. Now, with Ed and Winry's wedding coming up fast and Al with a girlfriend he loved dearly, that all seemed like it'd only been yesterday. Even the aforementioned time the brothers spent on their journey to get their bodies back felt like it hadn't even been that long ago. Still, they'd come so far since then, and Al knew that none of them could've predicted what was happening to them now.

"So," Winry folded her hands on the table, leaning in towards Al in an excited manner, "when did you two get together?"

"Come now, you two, don't bug him with questions he doesn't feel comfortable answering," Granny chastised as she stood from the table, an amused smile on her face. "You of all people should know that such personal things are difficult to talk about at first."

The couple blushed a bit, but their faces turned serious, knowing she was right. During the two years between the boys getting their bodies back and leaving for their individual journeys, it had taken a lot of time for them to open up about their feelings to each other and much longer for them to display their affections in front of Al and Pinako, much less anyone else.

"It's alright," Al assured them, an honest smile on his face. While it would probably be a little strange at first, he actually found himself excited to talk about Mei to them. "Technically, we got together early on into our journey further East, but we kind of told each other how we felt before we left Xing. So…about two years ago."

"Why didn't you tell me in your letters?" The girl looked a bit hurt.

"It wasn't anything personal, I promise," he assured her. "Like Granny said, I just didn't really know how to talk about it for a while. Plus," he smirked a bit, "I wanted to surprise you guys for a change."

"Well, mission accomplished," Ed commented, chuckling sentimentally. Suddenly, like he had before, he straightened as if he remembered something. Looking at Alphonse seriously, he said, "Al, this is very important, so answer me honestly…Which one of you made the first move?"

Winry gasped at the question, giving Al a serious look as well, which kind of freaked the young man out, but he thought about it anyway. He remembered the day when he and the guys were set to leave Xing to head East. Mei was staying behind for another few weeks due to be injured (an incident that Al didn't really like thinking about), so he'd gone to bid her goodbye. They'd talked for a while, but then, as he was going to leave, a few things happened, and before he knew it, she was kissing him. The act had obviously taken him completely off guard, but it gave him the confidence to kiss her back, something he'd secretly been wanting to do for a while. It hadn't only been their first kiss, but his first kiss _ever,_ and that was certainly one thing he'd never forget.

"She did."

"HA!" Winry pointed at Ed, a triumphant grin on her face. "You owe me 200 sens!"

Her fiancé slouched in his chair, looking utterly defeated. "Dammit, Al, you let me down!"

Al stared at them. "Wait a minute…you _bet_ on which one of us would make the first move?"

"Yep!" Winry didn't look guilty in the slightest. "It wasn't for a whole lot, though."

Alphonse took a position similar to that of his brother, suddenly feeling super tired. "If I'd known my love life was this entertaining to you, I should've just told you before I even came."

"Oh, don't be like that!" Winry walked around the table, pulling both young men up so they were sitting up in their chairs. She stayed by her fiancé, though, leaning against his chair. He still looked a bit irritated at losing their bet, but he wrapped his arm around her waist anyway. Suddenly smiling gently at her soon-to-be brother-in-law, Winry said, "All teasing aside, we really are happy for you, Al."

"That's right," Ed added. He smiled defiantly. "Besides, you teased the two of us about our particular relationship all the time when we were kids, so consider us even now."

Al stared at both of them for a minute, surprised, but a warm smile soon grew on his face. "Okay."

"Right then!" Edward stood up, smiling brightly at his brother. "When she comes over here, she's gonna get a big, fat Elric family welcome!"

Al smiled. Same old Ed. Same old Winry. Same old Granny. He was pretty sure he really hadn't changed much either. Still, somewhere along the line, there were little things that had changed. On top of all that, they were heading on a path completely unknown to them. Coming upon them was a journey that would be both familiar and foreign. Old loves, new loves, old memories and new ones…

He couldn't wait.

* * *

 **There's the end! Did you like it? I hope you did!**

 **If you did happen to like this story, please favorite/follow it, and, if you're feeling generous today, favorite/follow me as well if you haven't already! Also, please put up a review to tell me what you think! I absolutely love the feedback!**

 **Once again, I hope you enjoyed this story! Have a great day!**


	5. The Big Day (Part 1)

**New short story! Yay! Sorry it's taken forever. Of course, my English teacher had to assign a huge multi-week writing project at the end of the year, hence why I've been slugging through this. This is also the reason why my "Watching FMA Brotherhood" story is taking so long. I'm here now though!**

 **Synopsis: Finally, it's Ed and Winry's wedding day, and there's enough anxiousness and excitement to go around! Still, it's amazing how many treasured memories come out of a wedding...**

* * *

"Urg! Winry's lucky I'm her friend. Otherwise, I'd kill her for putting me in this stupid thing…" Paninya grunted as she tugged at her bridesmaid dress, looking incredibly uncomfortable.

Mei chuckled at the other girl as she smoothed out her own identical dress, examining her appearance in the mirror. The dresses were nothing fancy – they were strapless, deep red in color, not skintight but not too fluffed out either, and along the side, the skirt rippled a bit. Still, despite their simpleness, they were still very pretty. In addition to their matching attire, the two bridesmaids also had their hair in low buns, though Mei had been slightly extra in braiding her hair beforehand. Looking at herself in the mirror, with a different style of clothing and makeup than she usually wore, the Xingese girl couldn't help but think, _I don't look too bad in Western clothing. I should try wearing it more…especially if I'm going to stay here with Al…_

The young princess hadn't told her boyfriend about her decision yet. The two of them had discussed their future living situation – that is, whether they would reside in Xing or Amestris – only once before, neither of them really wanting to delve into detail about it, but she had no doubt that it had been on his mind as much as hers. She knew that he would immediately insist they be together in Xing, but…she would never be able to forgive herself if she let that happen. Her, Ling, and Lan Fan had arrived at the Elric/Rockbell house in Risembool two weeks ago, and, in that time, she'd been able to see the home life that Alphonse was so used to, and she'd been reminded of how strong of a relationship he and Edward really had. To take him away from all of that and know that he would be missing them because of her…she couldn't bear it…

Her thoughts were interrupted again by Paninya, who, even though they'd met just a few days earlier, already felt like a quirky, big sister.

"Oh, well…Guess there's nothing I can do about it now." The older girl made a sour face, but it quickly turned into a bright smile. "I wish I could at least look as great as you, Mei. You really do look good!"

"You think so?" Mei smiled sheepishly, though silently she couldn't help but agree with her. She hadn't felt this pretty in a long time. "People have always said the color red suits me."

"I'd say!" Paninya smirked and gave her a thumbs up. "Al will be drooling on the floor! No doubt about it!"

The Xingese princess chuckled, her cheeks turning a bit red. She did always think it was cute whenever she could make the younger Elric brother flustered. "Oh, shut up."

Paninya looked like she was about to tease a bit more, but a knock at the door interrupted her before she had the chance. The two girls glanced at the door in time to see the tiny Pinako Rockbell come through the doorway. For her granddaughter's wedding, she wore a plain, short-sleeved black dress with matching black flats and a pearl necklace around her neck. Per her norm, though, her grey hair was pulled back in a tight bun. In all honestly, Mei was sure she had never seen the lady with her hair down.

Upon seeing the two young women all dressed up, Pinako gave them her signature "loving Granny" smile. "Well, don't you girls look nice."

Paninya smirked once more. "Nice? Come on, Granny! We look so much better than _nice_! How about _sexy?"_ She made a silly, overly-dramatic pose. "Oh! Or maybe _drop-dead gorgeous?"_ she continued, striking another pose.

A familiar laugh sounded from just outside the doorway. "Sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night."

They turned to see the bride standing in the threshold of the room, grinning amusingly at them. Her wedding gown was just about the most beautiful piece of clothing Mei had ever seen, which was saying a lot, seeing as she was royalty. The long sleeves of the dress were made of lace with tiny flower designs in them, which exposed her arms underneath, the corset was etched with crystals that made another flower design at the top of the bust, and the skirt puffed out just enough to where it wasn't hugging her, but it wasn't the size of a small table either. A modest diamond necklace hung around her neck, small crystal earrings adorned her ears, and a small silver headband sat on top of her hair, which was freshly curled and tied up in a high bun with some strands hanging freely on the sides.

Mei grinned widely and put her hands to her mouth, tears forming in her eyes. "Oh, Winry! You look so beautiful!"

"Wow…I honestly didn't know you had it in ya, girly," Paninya commented, now smiling sincerely. "That's one hell of a dress you got there."

"Oh, it's so beautiful!" Mei couldn't help but exclaim once more.

"Thanks," Winry smiled genuinely at them, somewhat embarrassed. She looked down at her dress as if she still couldn't believe she was actually wearing it. Lifting the skirt a bit, she said with a hint of sadness in her voice, "This was my mother's wedding dress."

The princess had heard a lot about Winry's parents from Alphonse, about how they'd been accomplished doctors who served in the Ishvalan Civil War and saved countless lives, both Amestrian and Ishvalan. He had also told her about how they'd been killed by Mr. Scar, whom they had also saved. When she'd heard this, she was absolutely horrified. During her first visit to Amestris, she had traveled with the former Ishvalan monk for a majority of the time, and never in her nightmares could she have imagined that he would do something like that. Sure, he was a very serious, stern man, and she had never seen him smile once, but…

 _"_ _I…can't believe it. How terrible…" she stared at the ground, wide-eyed in shock._

 _Her and Al were sitting in the window sill of the young alchemist's room in the palace, looking out at the sprawling royal city below them and the smaller village further down the hill. Al stared out at the beautiful landscape, his eyes sad from having told the story. There also seemed to be a little regret in there as well. He'd probably been reluctant to tell her this information seeing as the princess had spent a lot of time with the man, and he hadn't wanted to upset her._

 _Still, he turned toward her, looking serious. "I've been wanting to ask you…why did you hang around Scar that whole time? Did you have any idea what he was doing? Did you…I don't know…sense anything from him?"_

 _She slumped a little bit against the edge of the window, not meeting his gaze. Looking out at the rooftops, she said, "He and Mr. Yogi were some of the first people I ran into when I arrived in Amestris. I was exhausted from the trip across the desert, and they nursed me back to health and allowed me to travel along with them. At first, it was merely a convenience thing – they were going where I needed to go – but then…we just kept going, and our little trio started to feel more and more like a family. Then again, maybe that was just my naïve mind talking…"_

 _She let out a small, humorless chuckle at her own expense. Naïve was honestly putting it lightly._

 _"_ _I never was sure exactly what he was doing, but throughout our travels, he would leave Mr. Yogi and me for hours on end, sometimes for a whole day, and then usually come back with injuries. Even I was able to get suspicious after that. Then, we ran into Dr. Marcoh and he tagged along. When Mr. Scar had to disfigure his face, it was the first time I'd ever seen him use his alchemy like that. It honestly terrified me, but he asked me to heal up the doctor's face, so I did. Even after that, though, I never asked any questions."_

 _"_ _Why?"_

 _The princess was silent for a moment, trying to think about how she should word it. "When you become advanced enough in alkahestry, you're not only able to sense a person's chi, but you can also sense their inner disposition somewhat as well. Even back then, I was at least able to do that, and Mr. Scar's chi…there wasn't any traceable evil in it at all. Deep down, I sensed a once virtuous soul simply filled with overwhelming grief and despair. It was the saddest thing ever. I think even if I had found out what he had done, I would've stayed with him. I would've tried to help him see that his path wasn't the right one and help him to see the light in the world. I think, in the end though, he did eventually realize it. That makes me happy…"_

 _She pulled her knees into her chest, still looking down, somewhat ashamed. "I know that must sound awful, seeing as he's done so many horrible things, but I just can' t find it in my heart to think harshly of him, no matter how hard I try. I'm…really sorry, Al."_

 _"_ _You don't need to be sorry about it. That's just how you feel."_

 _His words surprised her, and she finally looked up at him. He smiled softly at her, though there was still sadness in his eyes. "I get where you're coming from. I think…when everything was really getting dicey with Father and we all had to work together to stop him, I was able to catch a glimpse of what he was really like, the man he used to be before he lost so much." His smile dropped, and he looked out again. "He's definitely made a new life for himself, helping with the rebuilding of Ishval with General Mustang. Still, I don't know if even I can forgive him for what he did to the Rockbells. That one deed tore Winry's whole world apart and caused her so much misery…I just can't accept that."_

 _"_ _Of course. I wouldn't expect you to."_

 _The young man turned back to her, studying her for a minute with those deep golden eyes of his. Such a serious gaze was enough to make her blush (it would be months before either of them confessed their feelings). Finally, he gave her a genuine smile that was almost kind of smirk. "You said you can sense a person's inner character, right? So, what's mine?"_

 _She stared at him for a second, then chuckled, grateful for him lightening the mood. Smirking back at him, she told him, "I don't need to sense your chi to know that."_

Granny Pinako gave her granddaughter a proud smile with just a hint of sadness. Sighing, she said, "I remember Yuri and Sarah's wedding like it was just yesterday. You look just as beautiful as she did that day."

"I'll take your word for it." Paninya walked over to Winry, wrapping her arm around the bride's shoulders. Smirking, she said, "One thing's for sure: if Al's gonna be left drooling over Mei, then Ed's definitely gonna pass out or something when he lays eyes on you."

Said man's future wife chuckled. "Now _that_ I wouldn't mind seeing."

"I just can't get over your dress," Mei commented, coming closer so she could examine it. "The crystals are such a nice touch, and I love how it's all white."

She looked up from the dress to see the other three women looking at her questioningly, to which she returned a confused glance. "What?"

Pinako gave her a gentle smile. "It's nothing, dear. I guess it would be expected that weddings over in Xing would be different than over here. You see, here in Amestris, all wedding dresses are white."

"Really?" This was surprising news to the princess. "Why is that?"

"I think it has something to do with the bride's purity or innocence or something like that," Winry informed her, though she didn't look too sure. "Right, Granny?"

Her grandmother simply smirked. "Something like that."

"In that case, maybe Winry's wearing the wrong color," Paninya smirked. "Lord knows what you and Ed have already done in your spare time…"

The automail mechanic's bright red face contrasted heavily to her snow-white dress. Hitting her friend in the arm a couple times, she exclaimed, "Oh, sh..shut up! Ed and I…We've done nothing like that!"

Said friend, not even fazed by the blows, laughed. "Sure, girl. I believe you."

"What a strange idea, though," Mei interrupted. "In Xing, both the bridge and groom usually wear these special robes called kimonos. They're typically made of really expensive fabric like silk or a fine cotton, and they're usually very colorful too. We believe that the vibrant colors of the world, of nature, are the best representation of the spiritual bond of marriage. In that regard, I guess, white wedding apparel would seem almost blasphemous."

"I can see where that idea comes from though," Winry commented, looking intrigued. She smiled. "It actually sounds really nice if you ask me."

There a knock on the doorframe, and the four women turned to see an older lady, maybe in her mid-40s, standing there with a gentle smile on her face. She was one of the many amiable people who lived in Risembool, though Mei had met so many of them over the past few weeks, she couldn't keep any names straight.

"We'll be about ready to start in five minutes, Winry Dear," she informed the bride.

Winry looked surprised for a second, and Mei could've sworn she saw a hint of trepidation in her eyes, but she quickly smiled. "Alright. Thanks, Darla."

Darla nodded, smiling, and headed back downstairs to the set-up in the backyard, where the ceremony would take place. Once she left, Winry looked down at the ground, taking a deep breath. After a moment of silence, she chuckled, "Oh, my God, this is _actually_ happening."

The other women lightly chuckled as well. Paninya put a hand on her shoulder. "You ready?"

"As I'll ever be, I guess." Her smile completely showed off both her excitement and anxiousness. Mei could see her hands shaking violently at her sides, and, before she knew it, she'd taken a hold of them, squeezing them tightly.

The princess smiled widely at her friend. "Everything's going to be great. You look beautiful, and I'm sure Edward looks just as handsome. You're going to walk down that aisle and say your vows and finally be married."

"Finally…" Winry smiled lovingly, probably thinking about her fiancé standing right outside. Looking at her grandmother, she said, "I'm marrying Edward Elric, Granny. Can you believe that?"

"Honestly, I'm still having trouble," Pinako told her, straightening up part of her granddaughter's skirt. "I always thought you two would just keep running around in circles the rest of your life. That, or you would somehow end up with Al in the most unlikely pair."

Mei was briefly startled by this statement, unconsciously feeling a bit jealous, even though it was Winry they were talking about. Her nerves were quickly settled, though, by the bride's laughter. "I don't think so. Al's a gentleman, and I think I've always wanted something a little more than that."

She looked at the Xingese girl next to her and winked, smirking. Mei immediately felt at ease, giggling. "Guess I'm safe then."

"Hell, I knew it the second you guys walked into Rush Valley the first time!" Paninya remarked. "I had to keep myself from getting sick it was so obvious."

"Oh, shut up."

"Well, now…" Granny stepped back from Winry's dress, looking over not only her but the two bridesmaids as well. Smiling sweetly, she said, "I think that about does it. Let's get this show on the road, shall we, ladies?"

* * *

Edward tapped his foot furiously, taking a deep breath. "Just a couple more minutes…"

Ling let out a hearty chuckle behind him. "Jeez, Ed, I don't think I've ever seen you so tense. You're the last person I would've ever expected to get nervous over something like this."

"Oh, no," Al chuckled as well, and Ed could practically hear the smirk in his little brother's voice. "I knew this was going to happen from the very beginning. It doesn't take much to get him flustered when Winry's involved."

The former alchemist finally turned around, giving his best man and groomsman a face. "Shut up! It does not!"

The two men, still smirking, raised an eyebrow at the groom, which only made his cheeks redden in embarrassment. Quickly turning away from them, he muttered, "You guys can be real jackasses sometimes, you know that?"

"What's wrong, Fullmetal?" Edward looked out to see Roy Mustang also smirking at him from his seat a few rows back in the congregation. "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet!"

"Ah, shut up, you flame bastard!" Ed shot back, his face even redder from annoyance. "You're married, aren't ya!? You of all people should be sympathetic with me right now!"

His former superior merely shrugged, looking amused. His smile disappeared though, when his rather pregnant wife, Riza, shot him a glare, saying something to him that Ed couldn't hear. She was probably chastising him, no doubt.

The groom looked out at the rest of the congregation. Besides pretty much the entire population of Risembool – which, as one would guess, wasn't that big – there were many other people whom the Elric brothers had met on their journey to get their bodies back all those years ago. Next to Mustang and Hawkeye, the rest of their team – Havoc, Feury, Breda, and Falman – in addition to Major Armstrong, Lieutenant Ross, and Sergeant Broshe, sat with tears already in their eyes, even though the ceremony hadn't even started yet. He was also able to catch General Armstrong and Major Miles among some other officers who were attending. When he and Ed met eyes, Miles gave Ed a small smile and head nod in acknowledgment, but Olivier was too disgusted in her brother's behavior to notice. Sheska sat close to that back, talking excitedly to Gracia. The chimeras – Darius, Heinkel, Zampano, and Jerzo – along with Dr. Marcoh and Yogi, sat passively in the middle, waiting for the thing to start. Then, there was Rose and Lan Fan, who sat chatting it up in the front, though Ed knew that the Xingese ninja would be ready for action any second should the need arise.

Edward couldn't help but smile out at the crowd. It seemed like so long ago that he'd met all these people – people who had helped him and his brother through so much. It seemed so surreal that they were here for his wedding, something that his fifteen-year-old self thought would never happen, not like he really had cared. His teacher's first lesson popped into his head – "One is all, and all is one." Ed and all these people shared a connection through his and Al's journey. All of them were key parts of their journey, and, apparently, their journey had become a part of all of them as well, something neither Ed or Al ever imagined.

 _Everything comes full circle, I guess…_

"It's not like she's going to abandon you at the alter or anything," Al chuckled, though he gave his brother a supportive smile. "There's nothing to be worried about."

"I know, but…" Ed _did_ know that. He knew that Winry loved him, and he loved her back dearly, so yeah, their marriage was certainly going to go off without a hitch. He was more worried about something going wrong, which would be just his luck. This day was a big deal to him, but it was ten times bigger for Winry. She'd probably been dreaming of her wedding day ever since she was a kid, and Ed didn't want anything to spoil this day for her. Not like he would ever admit that out loud, of course…

"It's hard to explain, okay?" he told his brother, rubbing the back of his neck. Turning to Al, he said, "When you and Mei get married, you'll understand."

This statement surprised Al, causing his cheeks to turn a bit red and him to look down. "Come on, Brother, I haven't even asked her yet…"

"Like you really need to." Ling slung his arm around the younger Elric, smiling amusingly. "Still, you better get on it. She's probably getting impatient. Plus, I want to have my proud big brother moment when you do!"

Al looked at the Emperor of Xing, suddenly concerned. "You think she is?"

"Knock it off, you moocher," Ed warned, his half-hearted glare causing the young king to retreat. The alchemist looked at his brother reassuringly, "Don't worry, Al. I doubt she even suspects a thing. It's probably gonna be the happiest surprise of her life."

Alphonse looked a bit reassured by this, though he still looked a bit nervous. "Here's hoping, I guess…"

Ed was about to give his brother another uplifting statement when Gracia waved to him from the back, signaling that it was time for the ceremony to begin. The young man's heart beat like a drum inside his chest, but he nodded in confirmation. Everyone in the congregation, seeing this, promptly quieted down and turned towards the back door of the house, where the bridesmaids and the bride herself would exit from. The priest quickly took his place at the altar, and the small band began to play. As the door began to open, Ed felt Al squeeze his shoulder very briefly in support, something he didn't know he needed until now.

Mei was the first one to come out of the house. Ed definitely had to admit that she certainly wasn't a tiny shrimp girl anymore. It was bit jarring to not see her in her typical Xingese clothing, but pleasantly so. She was pretty, no doubt about that, though certainly not as beautiful as Winry, but, then again, he was probably speaking from a biased point of few. He could certainly see why Alphonse was attracted to her though. As she came up to the front of the congregation, she flashed Ed a jovial grin, her show of support in her own perky way, and he couldn't help but smile back. She then looked a bit behind him, smiling more softly before turning away with a slight blush. The groom glanced back slightly to see his brother smiling lovingly at the girl, his cheeks a bit red as well. Seeing Ed's smirk, Al simply chuckled and punched him lightly in the back.

Paninya, the maid of honor, was next. Walking down the aisle, she was really anything but graceful. Ed had never in his life seen the tomboy wearing a dress, so he knew she had to be ungodly uncomfortable. Still, she gave the congregation her usual bright smile, though the white-knuckled grip she had on her tiny bouquet gave off the hint that she was definitely about to trip in her heels. When she had made it up to the front, she gave Ed a sharp thumbs up, making the congregation chuckle a bit and the groom to roll his eyes a bit at her incredible subtly.

Next came nine-year-old Elicia – the flower girl. It seemed so unreal to Ed how big she'd grown since he met her that first time him and Al had stayed at the Hughes household. She seemed to be in that awkward stage of growth – losing her baby face but certainly not looking like a young woman yet – but she was just as sweet as she'd always been. Ed smiled sadly as he thought about what her father would say if he was in attendance: " _Look at my little princess! Isn't she the most adorable thing you've ever seen! Throw those flowers, honey! Gosh, it won't be long before she's walking down the aisle as a bride! I don't know what I'll do with myself!"_

He'd probably go on and on for hours if he really wanted to, and they would all be annoyed with him because they wouldn't know any different. They wouldn't know how much one could miss those ramblings when he was no longer there to gush…

The young man glanced at the empty seat next to Mustang and – briefly exchanging a look with the general, who seemed to be thinking the same thing – he thought sadly, _Wish you could be here, Hughes. You're the one who called this, after all…_

He drew his attention back to the proceedings at hand, looking back to the door…

Time seemed to slow down for a second or two as he stared at the woman standing in the threshold of the doorway, who somehow looked just as nervous as he felt, though she still had her bright smile spread across her face. The woman who'd been his best friend since they were born, who'd always supported him and Al through thick and thin, no matter what kind of trouble they'd found themselves in. The woman who loved and slaved over her work more than any person he'd ever met, whose determination and perseverance had inspired him to keep moving forward and never give up. The woman whom he'd unknowingly fallen in love with. The woman who was about to become his wife.

"Wow…" That was all Ed could manage to mutter through his palpitating heart and newly blanked-out mind.

As Granny began to walk her down the aisle, the congregation rose. Winry glanced around the crowd, exchanging small smiles with some people she was able to pick out, including Riza and Armstrong, who was balling his eyes out by now. He looked like he wanted to make a bombastic declaration of the beauty of love or something like that, but he seemed to be restraining himself for the bride and groom's sakes.

When the grandmother-granddaughter duo finally made it to the front with the rest of the wedding party, the soon-to-be-married couple finally looked at each other, their nerves having prevented them from doing so until now. Seeing the swirl of both pure happiness and anxiousness in his fiancé's eyes, Ed gave her a gentle smile, to which she quickly returned.

The priest cleared his throat. "Who gives this woman to be wedded to this man?"

"I, her grandmother, do," Pinako answered, probably looking happier than Ed had ever seen her. Then, glancing over at the groom, she gave him her signature Granny smile and, her voice cracking, added on, "Gladly."

Ed had to stop himself from getting choked up right there, but he replied with the most sentimental smile he probably ever given the old woman. The priest smiled and nodded at this declaration, motioning to Ed. The groom, taking a deep breath, held out his hand, which the bride, smiling, took gently and walked up next to him.

As Granny moved back to her seat in the congregation and the priest searched for his page in his book, Ed glanced at his soon-to-be-wife, joking, "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

Winry let out a small chuckle, smirking. "I'm ready if you are."

* * *

 **There you go! Did you like it? If you did, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me if you haven't already. If you have, then you're awesome! Also, please leave me a review to tell me what you think! I take all the feedback I can get!**

 **I really hoped you enjoyed this story! Have a great day! There'll be more to come soon (hopefully)!**


	6. The Big Day (Part 2)

**Part 2 of the wedding day! Yay! Let's get into it!**

* * *

"Gosh, I'm so full of cake!" Edward exclaimed, leaning back in his chair. He had a pleasant smile on his face. "I don't think I'll ever want to leave this seat again."

Al looked at his brother questioningly. "Did you _have_ to eat three whole pieces?"

"Hey, blame Lena. She's the one who made it, and it tasted too good to just have one little slice."

"I'll definitely have to agree with you there," Winry said to her new husband. Nibbling at a piece of her own cake, she gave at Ed an exasperated, yet loving look. Right now, she felt as if nothing could tear down the happiness she felt right now, the happiness of finally being married and being surrounded by so many people that meant a lot to her, Ed, and Al. "Still, we just had our first dance together, and now you go and gain all those calories back."

"It's more like I'm adding them on," Ed retorted, swallowing his last big bite. Smiling at her, he said, "Don't get me wrong, it was nice being able to dance with you, but it wasn't like it was a work out or anything."

"Really?" Paninya asked, smirking as she leaned over the table to be seen behind Al. "It looked to me like you were sweating up a storm."

"Oh, so it wasn't just me!" Ling interjected from the other side of Winry, showing off his dopey smile. "Here I thought I was going crazy."

The groom narrowed his eyes, glaring at the bridesmaid and groomsman as his cheeks turned a bit red. "I hate you both."

The rest of the wedding party couldn't help but laugh at his expense, especially Winry. She knew firsthand how hopeless Ed could be when it came to anything romantic, especially when he had to display it in public. She'd complained about his lackluster proposal, where he'd tried to relate the union of marriage with his stupid law of equivalent exchange, enough times for just about everyone to know about it. Still, while it may not have been in the way she'd hoped he would ask her to marry him, when she looked back on it, it really was sweet. Ed had certainly mellowed out in his romantic shyness, but back then, he had it _really_ bad, so he simply expressed his love for her in the only way he knew how. She guessed she couldn't blame him for that. During their first dance as husband and wife, though, while it did turn out very personal and romantic, the first few minutes were filled with some extreme blushing and nervousness on Ed's part, though she wasn't sure why. Maybe he was afraid he'd step on her feet or something…

"Well, you do you, Ed," Alphonse said, chuckling a bit. "I have to go dance this off, otherwise I'm going to fall asleep."

The younger Elric stood up from his seat and walked over to Mei, who was sitting next to her brother. Smiling and holding out his hand, he asked, "Shall we?"

The princess smiled back eagerly, taking his hand. "Of course."

As the couple walked off to the dance floor, the other four members of the wedding party watched them with great interest. Al and Mei were still in the stage where they felt awkward displaying their affections for each other in front of most people. Although she was so very happy for the two of them and she completely understood where they were coming from, Winry still couldn't help but find the whole thing infuriating. Ling had actually admitted that he was beyond used to seeing them together by now, since a majority of their relationship had taken place in the East. Both her and Ed, though they knew the position the couple was in, couldn't help but feel a little hurt. Maybe they'd scared Al off with their barrage of questions…

 _Dammit, Al,_ she half-heartedly glared at the back of the man's head. _I want to see you kiss your girlfriend. Is that too much to ask?_

"They are so god-damned cute," Paninya expressed, also watching at the couple and almost looking annoyed at the fact. "In a good way, though. They're not like you two where I kind of want to throw up."

"I'm going to assume that's a compliment," the bride answered, not even bothering to turn around.

Ed smirked at Ling. "How long do you think it'll take him?"

The emperor smiled mischievously back. "Shouldn't be long now."

"What?" Winry glanced between the two men, confused. The mere looks on their faces told her that they knew something she didn't, and she hated that. "How long it'll take him to do what?"

Both of them suddenly flinched, realizing they'd mentioned something they probably shouldn't have. Edward quickly recovered, though, smiling a little excitedly at his wife. "Sorry, can't say, but you'll know about it soon enough."

"If I'm going to find out anyway, why can't you tell me now?"

Ling grinned as well, looking much more excited than Ed. Sounding almost like a little kid, he told her, "It's a secret."

Winry sighed in exasperation, knowing she wasn't going to get any answers from them. "Jeez, you two. It's not right to keep secrets from a girl on her wedding day."

A familiar feminine male voice interrupted them. "My, Winry dear, you really do look gorgeous today. Just like an angel."

The remaining wedding party looked up from their conversation to see Mr. Garfiel, Winry's former automail teacher, smiling at them. His normally flashy moustache was trimmed to be even more glamourous for his apprentice's special day. In addition to that, his typical work overalls had been replaced with a much nicer pair with a white button-down shirt, dress shoes, and a light jacket. In all honestly, in Winry's eyes, he only looked slightly more fashionable than he usually was. Still, she smiled wildly at his appearance, happy that the man who'd done so much for her had been able to make it to her wedding.

"Thanks so much, Mr. Garfiel." The bride got up from the table and lightly embraced her former teacher. "I'm so glad you were able to come!"

"Dear, you know I wouldn't miss this for the world! Besides, I have been in dire need of a break for months now." The man looked her over once more, smiling proudly. "Just look at you." He shot Ed a tiny smirk. "You're one lucky man, Edward."

The groom chuckled, glancing lovingly at his new wife. "Trust me. I know."

Winry felt her cheeks grow hot at this statement, but she tried her best to hide her blush. Smirking at him, she retorted, "And you better not forget it."

Garfiel chuckled. "Anyway, I've been sitting like a bump on a log this whole night, so I was wondering if you would do me the honor of dancing with you. Mind if I borrow your wife for a moment, Edward?"

"Don't worry about it! He's too full and fat to care!" Paninya joked, patting Ed's stomach and nearly flipping him back in his chair.

"Hey! Watch it! You ate just as much cake as me!"

"Yeah, but it's pretty easy to tell you've been lazy these past few months. It looks like you've gained weight."

"Shut up! For your information, I work out every day!"

As the groom and maid of honor continued to argue, Winry chuckled a bit and turned to her mentor. "I'd love to dance with you."

"Wonderful!" Holding out his arm, he said, "Shall we?"

The two of them made their way to the dance floor just as the band was finishing up the latest song – a traditional jig that was really popular down in the south. Winry was glad to see that all the guests seemed to be enjoying themselves. She could see Izumi and Sig dancing happily together right in the center, not afraid to show off their moves what-so-ever, and she could also see the edge of the dance floor where Lt. Ross was trying to teach Sargent Brosche the correct step sequence, to which he looked like he was miserably failing, though Maria seemed to be patient with him. Winry really wished those two would wake up and smell the roses already…

The band began to play a soft ballad, which Winry recognized as an instrumental version of one of her favorite songs on the radio.

"Oh, I love this song!" she told Mr. Garfiel as they grabbed hands.

The two of them took some of the first steps, and Garfiel smiled proudly. "Looks like I picked the perfect time, huh?"

They danced the first verse in silence until Garfiel once again looked at her with pride. "I'm so proud of you, Winry. You've come a long way."

The bride blushed a bit, smiling gently. "All thanks to you."

"Oh, please. I've only taught you about automail. This…" He gestured to all of her, smiling genuinely. "This right here. You've grown into a bright, beautiful young woman, and I'm pretty sure you have yourself to thank for that."

Her smile grew a bit bigger at his words, allowing herself a bit of pride. She guessed things _were_ going pretty well for herself right now. Just as she was about to thank him for his kind statement, another voice interrupted, "Sorry. May I cut in?"

Winry turned in surprise to see Roy Mustang standing beside them, an amiable smile on his face – an expression she didn't see on the man quite often. Usually, he was smirking due to something at Edward's expense.

Garfiel smiled at the other man. "Of course. If the bride doesn't mind, that is."

He looked at said girl for her permission. She stared at Roy for a second, still a bit taken aback by his request, but a smile soon grew on her face as well. "Of course, General."

So Garfiel handed her off to the officer, bowed, and walked off. As she and Mustang began to waltz around, Winry couldn't help but chuckle. "I'd watch out if I were you. Ed will have a fit if he sees you dancing with me."

The general smirked. "Oh, yes. I can see it now." He proceeded to do a quiet recreation of what they both knew would happen. " _Get your grimy hands off my wife, you flame bastard!"_

Winry let out a laugh. Her and General Mustang honestly didn't know each other _that_ well, but she knew that the one thing they both had in common was that they loved to make fun of Edward Elric at times.

"So," she said as they spun around, "what made you want to dance with me tonight, General?"

"Well, my wife isn't exactly fit to be dancing right now," he explained, referring to Lieutenant Hawkeye, who sat talking at one of the tables, very much pregnant. "Still, I needed to get up and stretch my legs."

Winry chuckled. "I see. When is she due?"

"A month or so. Give or take."

"Congratulations again." She smiled brightly. It still seemed unreal that those two were actually married and about to have a baby. In fact, when they'd found out (both about the wedding and the impending baby), Ed and Al had just about had heart attacks in complete disbelief. Still, she was so unbelievably happy for them. "We'll be expecting a call."

"Of course."

They danced in silence for a couple seconds. Then, Roy let out a small laugh. "It's so hard to believe all of us actually made it this far, huh?"

The bride was surprised by the sudden question, but she immediately understood what he was talking about and nodded, smiling softly. "Yeah. I guess it is."

"If it hadn't been for you, I don't think those boys could've done it."

"Wha…?" She knew that he was talking about Ed and Al, but she didn't quite understand where that statement had come from. Before she could ask however, the general glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

"Well, I think that's enough stretching for me. Thanks for dancing with me, Winry. Now…"

He suddenly pulled her arm up, causing her to spin around and face away from him. She began to trip from the momentum but was quickly caught by another set of arms. He was similarly built with Mustang, with some facial hair and a slight sent of tobacco…

"Lieutenant Havoc?"

The man smiled brightly at her. "Looks like it's my turn! Come on. I don't have as much time as that bastard."

"Wait a minute. What…?"

He just smiled at her and grabbed her hands in response, gently pulling her into a dance. Winry stared at him, somewhat confused. Yes, she knew the lieutenant only slightly less than General Mustang, and it wasn't like she upset to dance with him, but she didn't quite understand what had just happened. _His turn? What does that mean?_

"For the record, I knew the chief had a thing for you as soon as I saw you two together," Havoc commented, referring to Ed as he smirked. Winking, he said, "I'm usually good at gauging those things. Thanks for keeping an eye out for him for us. We tend to worry about him sometimes, you know?"

Knowing that he was referring to the rest of Mustang's subordinates and being touched by how much they really did care about Ed and Al, she nodded and smiled a bit. "Yeah."

The man, like Mustang, glanced at something behind her shoulder. Frowning, he complained, "Jeez, time's up already?"

"It doesn't take long. She's probably been sick of you for a while, Jean."

Winry once again found herself being spun around, and the two of them had already danced a few steps before she recognized Officer Falman as her new partner.

"Mr. Falman?" It was then that she noticed something that really struck her as odd: besides the two of them, the whole dancefloor was empty. The rest of the guests were gathered around the floor, watching with smiles on their faces. Winry looked back at her partner, utterly confused and a little freaked out. "What's…going on?"

The officer simply smiled softly at her. "I wanted to dance with the bride. Is there something wrong with that?"

Again: a glance over her shoulder. Chuckling a bit, he said, "You really look beautiful today, Winry. I wish you the best happiness."

She was spun around once again, much more gently this time.

"Long time, no see, Mrs. Elric." Breda winked at her. They danced for about the same amount of time as she had with Falman before she was passed on to another partner.

"Feeling dizzy yet?" Sargent Feury chuckled a bit, and Winry found herself smiling too. She was pretty sure she knew what was going on now.

"Tell me: who's my next partner?"

Spin. This time, Sargent Brosche, who grinned sheepishly. "Careful. I might step on your toes."

She chuckled. "Trust me. With Ed, I'm used to it."

"How do you do, Ms. Winry?" A familiar deep voice spoke joyfully from behind her. She spun around on her own to meet up with Major Armstrong. As they took their first steps together, the bride let out a small laugh in delight.

"I feel honored that so many men want to dance with me on my wedding day," she joked.

"Why, of course!" the giant man answered. Winry couldn't see beneath his curly mustache, but she knew he was smiling brightly. "Who wouldn't want to dance with a beauty such as yourself on such a glorious day!"

She chuckled a bit. Alex Louis Armstrong never failed to warm her heart. Suddenly, though, his demeanor became more serious and somewhat sad. His soft eyes were filled with sympathy, though she wasn't quite sure for who. Then, he said something that took her completely off guard

"This really is such a special day, Ms. Winry. Everyone here, myself included, is so very happy for you and Edward. It's…" He looked down at their feet sadly. "It's a shame that neither of your parents could be here to see the amazing young people you two have become."

She looked up at him, completely taken aback by this sudden comment. "Major…"

"Still," he continued, interrupting her, "I know that they must be smiling from wherever they are, as well they should be." He finally looked up at her, and her heart ached to see tears in the muscle man's eyes. "You and Edward, and Alphonse, for that matter, are truly incredible people. Everyone…every person here feels blessed to have you children in our lives. I know this for a fact, and since your parents are sadly not with us, all of us are prepared to be there for you should you ever need us. So…from all the men here, consider this our father-daughter dance to you."

By this point, tears had welled up in Winry's eyes and were now flowing freely down her cheeks. The father-daughter dance. It had never crossed her mind. For the past year or so they'd been planning the wedding, she had tried to block out the thought that her parents weren't going to be there – that her mom wouldn't help her put on the wedding dress she'd worn some twenty-five years before and that her father wouldn't walk her down the aisle and give her away. She was sure Ed had had similar thoughts as well. The thought had depressed her, so she'd chosen not the think about. She'd told herself that she was fine with skipping some of the traditions. Now, here were all these men who'd done so much for her, Ed, and Al – men who really meant so much to them – giving her the one wedding gift she thought she would never receive.

Major Armstrong gingerly wiped some of the tears from her cheeks, giving her a soft smile. "Come now. I believe there are a few others who wish to dance with you."

She turned around and grasped hands with Mr. Dominic. As they swayed, he actually gave her a genuine smile, something he'd never done to her. "Well, it's certainly nice to know that _you_ clean up nice. Paninya certainly doesn't have a clue."

Next came his son, Ridel. "Come on, Winry. I don't think I've ever seen you cry so much."

Sig. "Never thought I'd see the little shrimp actually get married, especially to a girl like you."

Dr. Marcoh. "Your parents would be so proud of you, my dear."

Zampano. "At least _you_ know what you're doing. I'm kind of just along for the ride."

Jerzo. "Trust me, I'm a lot better than that dull crocodile."

Heinkel. "I'll tell you: dancing with a pretty lady sure makes a guy's day a lot better."

Darius. "Us guys aren't worth you crying your eyes out. Come on. You'll ruin your makeup or something."

Mr. Yogi: "I must say: I've danced with many beautiful ladies at countless balls, and you're definitely one of the best."

Major Miles: "Congratulations, Ms. Winry. I wish you and Fullmetal the best."

" _Finally,_ it's my turn." As Miles bowed at the end of their dance, Ling stepped in and took his place.

Though she was still crying a bit and sniffling, Winry managed a smirk at the young emperor. "I should've known you'd be at the end of this line."

He smiled back at her. "Yeah, well, it's been a few years since I've had to Western ballroom dance, so bear with me."

They stepped to-and-fro for a little bit, as it seemed he was allotted a little more time with her than the others. She glanced over to the side, where a lot of the men she'd just danced with were gathered, all of them smiling supportively at her. She felt herself choke back a sob again. She didn't even know half of those men all that well, but still…to think they'd do all this for her…

She looked down at her and Ling's dancing feet. Feeling more tears come on, she gripped his hand tightly and quietly said, "Thank you. All of you. So much…"

"No need to thank us. We wanted to do this for you," the king explained softly, an audible smile in his voice. "I just feel honored to be included."

She raised her head, and he gave her a brotherly smile. "Thank you for welcoming me into your home and for including me in your family, Winry. I truly am honored to know you."

Through her new tears, the bride chuckled a bit in happiness. "Of course. The same goes to you."

"Okay. It's almost over." He glanced over her shoulder and grinned at whoever was behind her. "One more to go."

Slowly, she turned around and, as soon as she saw him, she couldn't help but let out another sob.

Al stood there, giving her his signature gentle smile and extending his hand in invitation. She took the few steps towards him, and they grasped each other's hands. However, they only danced for maybe two steps until she broke down completely and just wrapped her arms around him in tight hug. He was surprised at first, obviously expecting a dance, but quickly returned the gesture, holding her tightly.

"M... Moron…" she cried into his shoulder. "Making a girl cry on her wedding day. You're terrible…"

Her brother-in-law chuckled, still hugging her. "Sorry. Blame your husband. It was his idea. I guess I did help out a little, though."

Winry laughed, allowing herself to pull away. The two of them looked at each other, and Alphonse chuckled some more. "For what it's worth, you still look pretty good."

"Ha! I'm sure," the bride retorted as she wiped her eyes, trying to be careful of her mascara, though she was sure it had already made black streaks down her face. She still smiled at Al though, and pulled him into a hug once more. "Thanks, Al. I didn't know I needed that until now."

"No problem. Still, I'm not the one you should be thanking."

By this point, the song – which had seemed so long, despite being around four minutes or so – had finished, and all the guests were clapping in delight. After a few seconds, they all smiled at each other and made their way back to their tables, chatting away. As the crowds dispersed, Winry finally caught sight of Edward on the far side of the floor, smiling sweetly at her with his hands in his pockets. Damn man. He looked handsome enough when he _didn't_ have a tux on.

She smiled at Al, planting a quick kiss on his cheek, which made the alchemist blush a bit and say, "Just go thank him."

She chuckled a bit at his reaction, then did as she was asked, turning and walking toward her husband. He noticed this and began walking toward her too, causing the two of them to meet in the middle. Then, they just kind of stared at each other for a moment. Winry had always loved Edward's eyes. Besides their gorgeous golden color, they really were a window into his soul, always giving away what he was feeling even if he was putting up a front. It wasn't like she really needed that window now, though. His eyes, his face, his whole being just screamed happiness at the moment.

 _SMACK!_

"Ow!" Ed winced and gripped his arm where his wife had just slapped him. Looking at her confusedly, he exclaimed, "What was that for!?"

"That's for making me cry on our wedding day, idiot!" she shouted back half-heartedly. In all honestly, it was really taking all her might not to smile brightly at him.

Her husband looked like he was about to snap back with some kind of witty retort, but she kissed him before he had the chance. Their second kiss as husband and wife. He got over his initial surprise quickly, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her back. When they pulled away, Winry held his face in her hands, their foreheads touching, while his hands lay on her waist.

"Thank you so much, Ed. This…I don't think this day could've been any better."

He smiled at her. "That's what I was hoping for. The day's not over yet, though."

She rolled her eyes a bit, though she still managed a smile. "Don't say that. It's like you're begging for something to go wrong."

He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "Right. Sorry."

She let out a small laugh as well. This man, her best friend since childhood, was her husband. Edward Elric was her _husband._ God, her last name _Elric_ now.

Giving him another small kiss, the bride said, "I love you."

He smiled, kissing her back. "I know."

"Oh, shut up. I'm not tired yet. Let's go dance some more."

* * *

 **God, I love writing about relationships between these characters. For those wondering, there actually will be a third part to this particular story line.**

 **Hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please follow/favorite this story and/or me, if you haven't already! Also, if you're up for it, leave me a review to tell me some specifics. I love me some specifics. I love feedback!**

 **There you go! Have a wonderful day!**


	7. The Big Day (Part 3) - The Proposal

**The third and final part of this particular little story is finally here! From my ever subtle foreshadowing and the title, you've probably been able to deduce what this is about. Let's see if Al handles his proposal better than Ed...**

* * *

Alphonse smiled as he watched his brother and new sister-in-law interact on the edge of the dance floor. Ed's plan had gone off without a hitch, making the night even more memorable than it had already been. Now, they could only guess where their lives would lead them from here.

"Alphonse Elric." His thoughts were cut off by his girlfriend walking up to him, a huge grin on her face and some tears in her own eyes as well. Shaking her head in amused dismay, she told him, "That was the sweetest thing I've ever seen in my life."

The alchemist chuckled a bit. "Good. That's what we were going for." He turned to the couple once more and, his voice growing a bit sad, said, "We figured that, since Uncle Yuri isn't here, we would give her the father-daughter dance she deserved."

Mei, hearing the drop in his voice, drew closer to him, also looking at Edward and Winry. "Yuri…you mean Winry's father?"

"Yeah."

"And the father-daughter dance, is that…" the princess looked off to the side, her cheeks turning red, "is that another wedding tradition here?"

Al looked at her, surprised at her demeanor, but he couldn't help but smile lovingly at her. Reassuringly, he told her. "Yeah. Usually the bride and her father share a dance together at the reception. You don't need to be embarrassed, Mei. It's not like any of us expect you to know our traditions."

"I _should_ know them though!" she pouted, looking disappointed in herself. "This is my second time being over here, I'm royalty that is supposed to know foreign traditions, and my boyfriend is Amestrian for God's sake!" She deflated once more. "I'm hopeless. I didn't even know that your wedding dresses are always white until a few hours ago."

"Really?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, though he chuckled a bit. "If it helps, I didn't even consider the fact that wedding attire would be different between Xing and here."

"Is that so?" She managed a smirk at him, his statement having reassured her. Reaching up and moving a part of his bangs out of his face, she teased, "The all-knowing Alphonse Elric is unaware of something?"

"Oh, ha, ha." He took a hold of her hand, grasping it tenderly. "I just have to educate myself on Xingese weddings, I guess."

 _Especially since I want to marry you…_ he added to himself.

The ring box in his pocket suddenly felt heavier than usual. Zampano had picked it up from the jewelry store in Central and brought it when he and Jerzo arrived for the wedding a couple days ago, and Al had kept it on his person ever since, completely paranoid of losing it. Well, there was that and the fact that he wasn't entirely sure how to go about proposing or when exactly he wanted to do it. God knows he couldn't get any helpful tips from Ed, whose proposal hadn't been very romantic (Al did have to give his brother credit that the idea was actually a little creative, though it wasn't the best strategy to use on Winry and he was pretty sure Ed hadn't intended to seem creative in the first place). He wanted the whole experience to be special for him and Mei, like when he'd told her he loved her for the first time, which was also a very stressful ordeal for him, though not even half as much as this was.

Mei smiled teasingly at him, her eyes shining a bit in the twilight. With that on top of her dress that fit her perfectly, makeup that showed off her features, and hair that framed her face beautifully, Al really had a hard time focusing. "Perhaps we both need to do some research."

"Yeah, maybe," he chuckled, putting his hands on her waist and pulling her close. She smiled, placing her hands on his shoulders, and the two of them swayed to the music for a bit, studying each other's faces as they danced. Al still couldn't get over how beautiful the princess had grown since they first met almost six years ago.

"Six years…" he muttered, his eyebrows furrowed in disbelief.

His girlfriend looked at him with a mix of confusion and mild concern. "Al?"

The young man chuckled at his own absent-mindedness. "Sorry. It's just…it's been six years since you first came over here…when we first met."

Her eyebrows raised a bit at this revelation, but a nostalgic smile appeared on her face. "I guess you're right. It seems like so long ago…"

"That's because it was." Six years since he and Mei had met, since the struggle against Father and the homunculi began. Ten years since he and his brother attempted human transmutation and lost their bodies. Five years since they beat the homunculi and he got his body back. Three years since him and Ed left to research all kinds of alchemy. Two years since he and Mei had become a couple, hopefully with many more to come…

Alphonse chuckled, gazing out at all the old friends he and his brother had met on their journey and the people who had been there their whole lives. "We're getting pretty old."

"Well, you did peak at fifteen with saving the country and all," Mei joked, though it was diminished by the proud and loving smile on her face. Shaking her head and feigning disappointment, she said, "Having a boyfriend who's washed up at the age of twenty. What am I to do?"

"Well, you could always…" Al started to retort, but he quickly bit his tongue, startled with himself. _Did I just almost say "marry me?"_

The small box in his pocket felt like it weighed fifty pounds.

"What?" Mei asked teasingly, not having caught his slight alarm. "I could always what?"

Relieved that she hadn't noticed his slip-up, the alchemist let out a small laugh as a cover up. "You've got me. I'm not sure what you should do."

She smirked at him, subconsciously telling him, _I know you just totally failed in coming up with a comeback, so I win._ The smirk quickly melted into a small smile, though, as she quietly said, "Oh, well. Washed up or not, I still love you either way."

"That's a relief…" Al smiled, amazed that his heart still skipped a beat whenever she said those three words. He couldn't help himself. Closing the space between them, he kissed her softly. Upon pulling away, he touched his forehead with hers, telling her with a gentle smile on his face, "I love you too."

She blushed a bit, looking down sheepishly, and Ling's words suddenly echoed in his brain: _Better get on it. She's probably going impatient._

 _No, Ling,_ Al thought, looking at said man's sister, _Ed's right. She doesn't look like she's expecting anything. Maybe…_ I'm _the one who's impatient._

Sighing, he kissed Mei's forehead and said, "Follow me."

He began to lead her off the floor and towards the house. The young princess looked momentarily surprised, but smiled good-naturedly, albeit a little confused. "Just where are we going?"

"Nowhere special," he informed her, his heart beginning to beat a little faster in his chest. Smiling at her, he added, "I just want some time alone with you is all. We haven't exactly been able to have any lately."

This was completely true. Ever since she, Ling, and Lan Fan showed up at the Rockbell house a couple weeks ago, there had been a total of seven people residing there, not including Den. With that many people, there was little to no privacy. Not only that, but Granny had a strict open-door policy due to there being not one, but two couples. Then, adding all of that on top of the last preparations for the wedding, there was very little down time. Al and Mei had managed to have a total of two evening strolls together, but that was about it.

Mei smiled in understanding, looking excited at the thought. "Sounds good to me."

The two of them walked around to the front of the house, where the semi-dark moonlit night heavily contrasted to the party out back. Faint sounds of wedding guests and music could be heard, but besides that, it was completely silent. The couple stood leaning against the railing on the front porch for a while, silently gazing at the star-filled sky and the humble village that lay before them. Alphonse wrapped his arm around Mei's shoulders, as the summer night's air was slightly chilly, and the girl gingerly lay her head on his shoulder in response.

Al looked down at his girlfriend and smiled lovingly. _No need to go right into it. Let's enjoy this for a while._

After a few more minutes of silence, Mei sighed contently. "This reminds me of when we would sit in the window sills of the palace and look down at the village, and we would just talk…"

"Yeah…" Now he knew why the scene felt so familiar and comforting to him. Those were the kind of moments that didn't seem special at the time, but made for some of the fondest memories.

"I was actually thinking about that earlier…"

"Yeah? What made you think of it?"

A small pause as she leaned more into his shoulder. "I'm not sure. I just do that sort of thing sometimes."

A few more moments went by in silence, with only the sound of the wind and occasional shouts from guests in the backyard interrupting it.

"Hey, Al?"

"Hm?"

"I've actually been wanting to talk to you about something."

Her voice sounded hesitant, almost nervous, which was unlike her and immediately raised a red flag for Al. What could she be talking about? He wasn't sure, but if there was something wrong, his proposal could definitely wait. Looking at his girlfriend with concern, he gently turned her face towards him. "What is it?"

Seeing his expression and obviously feeling guilty, she immediately gave him a reassuring smile and spoke in a more upbeat tone. "Oh, there's no need to be worried about it! It's nothing bad!"

Now, obviously, this wouldn't usually cause him to let his guard down, but he could sense the sincerity in her words, so he allowed himself to relax. Sighing in relief, he asked, "What is it then?"

"Well…" She cleared her throat, stepping away slightly and facing him, a determined look on her face. Smiling confidently, she told him, "I want to stay here with you."

That certainly wasn't what he'd been expecting. Half because he didn't understand and half because he wanted to make sure he'd heard her correctly, Al looked at her, surprised, and asked, "What?"

Mei chuckled softly at his bewilderment. Coming closer and holding his face in her hands, she repeated, "I want to live here, in Amestris, with you."

That's when it finally clicked in her boyfriend's brain, and he felt his heart swell a little bit. A few weeks before he'd left the East to come back home, the two of them had come to the sudden revelation that, if they were to remain in a relationship, it would be best if they lived in the same country rather than try to work it out long distance. Still, figuring out whether they would reside in Xing or Amestris wasn't as simple of a choice as it seemed. While both of them were willing to be with each other pretty much anywhere, there was still their respective families to think about, people that neither one of them were wholly comfortable parting with. They'd only really addressed the issue once, and, rather irresponsibly, hadn't discussed it since…until just now.

The young man thought about his girlfriend's family back in her home country - her mother and her two older sisters - and how happy she'd looked being with them, and a pang of guilt ached in his chest. To make her leave all that for him…

He began to open his mouth in protest of her decision, but she quickly put a finger to his lips, prematurely silencing him. "Before you say anything, I've thought this through a lot, both from your perspective and mine. I've gotten permission from both Ling and Mother, so I'm not going against their wishes, and I'm sure Mrs. Pinako will let me stay with you guys in the house. I'll have to sleep in a spare bedroom or even on the couch, of course…"

"Mei," Al managed to cut in, gently taking her hand from his mouth and looking at her intently, "I can't let you do this. You're not leaving your family behind just for me."

"Al, I'm not leaving them behind. In fact, they were ecstatic when I told them, though maybe a little sad. Besides, I can always visit them…"

" _Mei…"_

 _"_ _Al."_ The princess shot back his name in the same warning tone he had. Her half-steely glare quickly diminished, though, and she sighed in exasperation, turning to look out at the countryside. "Believe me, I know where you're coming from, and yeah, having you with me in Xing would be absolutely incredible, but…"

She faced him, and his throat closed up at the sight of tears in her eyes. Still, she gave him a loving smile and grasped his hands firmly. "These past few weeks, I've been able to see the town you've grown up in and the people who practically raised you, and I've loved every minute of it. I've watched the way you act around your family, and you look almost ten times happier than you did over in Xing. Al, you've spent enough time away from this, away from your family, and I'm not just talking about your time in the East. _This_ is where you belong. _This_ is your home, and…" She let out a small giggle, looking overjoyed at what she was saying. "I feel like this is my home too."

Her boyfriend stared at her in utter shock, his heart completely touched by her words and his mind swarming with a million thoughts. Being tongue tied, all he could manage to say was, "God, I love you…"

Mei took this as a positive response, smiling brightly and kissing him. They stayed like that for a minute or so before pulling away, after which she looked at him seriously. "Don't think you're being selfish if you agree with me. I want to do this. I really do."

Well, there was no helping that. Al knew that he would feel guilty and selfish for having her stay here with him, but…she was right. With all the traveling he'd done over his mere two decades of life, he felt as if he'd spent more time away from Risembool and its people than actually living there. Not only that, but he'd just become used to living Ed, Winry, and Granny again, and he'd loved every second of it. He wanted to be there more for his brother and for the girls too. He wanted them to journey through life together like they always had.

Looking at his girlfriend guiltily, he brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and asked, "You're absolutely sure about this?"

She immediately nodded. "I am."

"And if you change your mind, you won't hold back your feelings from me?"

"If that's what you want. Of course, we'll have to do some discussing if that happens, though I'm pretty sure it won't."

She smiled cheekily at him. With that and the pretty exciting news he'd just heard, he couldn't help but smile back. Mei was going to stay in Amestris – with him. All of them were going to live together, and she would become part of the family.

 _Part of the family…_

The ring box just about sent an electric shock through Al's body, reminding him of its existence. His mind immediately began racing through his options. If Mei was unfamiliar with most Amestrian wedding customs, then the whole "down-on-one-knee" thing probably wouldn't click anything for her. So, what to do?

"Alright," he finally agreed with her, smiling lovingly. Then, he pretended like he'd just remembered something, perking up a bit. "Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. I have something for you."

Trying not to seem too hasty, he pulled the small velvet box from his coat pocket and simply held it out to her. Part of his brain was screaming, _What on earth are you doing!?_ while the other half calmly said, _Just trust me._ Al knew full well what he was doing…he was winging it.

He'd had plenty experience doing that.

Mei looked at the box in her boyfriend's desperately-trying-not-to-shake hand with surprise, though she smiled at him tenderly. "Alphonse, are you giving _me_ a gift on your _brother's_ wedding day?"

He chuckled at her question, excitement and nervousness beginning to overtake him. "Open it."

Grinning excitedly, she gently took the box from him and slowly opened the lid, causing his anxiousness to grow even more. When she finally saw the contents, the princess's expression melted into that of awe. Al would be the first one to admit that the engagement ring he'd picked out was certainly modest – just a small loop with a medium sized diamond and a few crystals surrounding it. When he'd told his brother his plans, Ed had offered to pay for it with one of the substantially large checks he got from military as veteran pay, but Al had immediately refused. This was a special moment, and he wanted everything to come from his heart and, also, his wallet.

"It's so beautiful…" Mei mused, looking at it more closely.

"You like it then?" Alphonse smiled hopefully as a slight wave of relief washed over him. It would certainly be a problem if she didn't like her own engagement ring. Jokingly, he added, "It fits your royal standards?"

Not moving her head, she looked up at him with a smirk. They both knew that she'd never been one for flashy jewelry. She reached up and caressed his cheek, pulling him for a small kiss. Smiling at him, she said, "I absolutely love it, but may I ask the occasion?"

"What? I can't give the woman I love a decent looking ring just because?"

She chuckled. "It's _more_ than decent looking, and yes. I was simply wondering."

"Well then…" Grinning excitedly (though he hoped not too excitedly), he carefully took the ring out of its casing, placing the box on the porch railing. _Stay calm, Al. Everything's fine._ "You wondered right. This is, in fact, another tradition we have over here."

"Oh, goodie," she giggled.

"Wanna take a guess?"

"Let's see…" With a mischievous smile on her face, she glanced between her boyfriend and the jewelry in his hand. The more she thought about it, though, the more her expression changed to that of concentration. Al had always adored that look. Whether she was working with alkahestry or just some other every day thing, her obsidian eyes would grow focused and zone in on the problem and her lips would part ever so subtly. After maybe a minute, she finally offered, "Well, Ed and Winry both gave each other rings during the ceremony today, so…is it a tradition for the groom's brother to offer a ring to the woman _he_ loves?"

The alchemist smiled knowingly. "Close, but not quite."

Mei shrugged her shoulders in defeat, smiling back good-naturedly, although her cheeks were a bit red with slight embarrassment. "Okay. I give."

"It's very simple, actually. You're right in that a man gives a ring to his girlfriend, but he doesn't necessarily have to be the groom's brother."

This explanation made her raise her eyebrows in slight confusion. "Okay…so, it's just tradition that _any_ guy gives his girlfriend a ring during a wedding."

"Not exactly. A guy can give his girlfriend a ring, but it doesn't _have_ to be at a wedding."

She furrowed her eyebrows, now utterly confused. "That completely contradicts what you just said, though. How can it be a wedding tradition if it doesn't _have_ to happen at a wedding?"

"Here's the thing," Al said, still smiling adoringly at her and briefly ignoring her question. For whatever reason, he felt surprisingly calm, and, instead of racing, his heart beat at a steady, slow pace. He recalled his first year in Xing, when Mei would test out all kinds of ancient Eastern riddles on him, constantly confusing and frustrating him. Now, it would seem it was his turn for some payback. "This is a special ring, and yes, I'm giving you this because I love you."

Suddenly, with that declaration, his heart began to beat hard against his chest, and his hands began to shake a bit as well. _There_ were the nerves. He felt his playful smile drop, and he just stared at his girlfriend with full seriousness, feeling the weight of everything coming out of his mouth. "I love you with all my heart, Mei. I don't know when I started, but I've loved you for a long time. The thing about this ring, though, is that…is that you aren't supposed to put it on unless you answer my question a specific way."

With his sudden change in demeanor, his girlfriend now looked at him with concern and confusion. Grasping both his hands, with the ring in the middle of them, she asked, "Al, what do you mean? What question?"

The two of them stared into each other's eyes for a minute, and Al felt a small smile form on his face. He'd gotten lost in those eyes so many times. He'd seen them full of happiness, despair, love, anger, determination…and each time, they were almost too beautiful to even describe. Then, of course, there was the girl the eyes belonged to. She was gorgeous enough to make any grown man melt, but there was so much more to her. Under all of that beauty, there was a fierce, skilled, loyal, caring, smart… _beautiful_ girl demanding to be known. Al knew her, alright. They'd literally been through the end of the world – or, at least, the closest thing to it – and had saved each other's lives countless times. They conversed ardently about each other's best dreams and worst nightmares. They'd studied together, traveled together, fought together. Being a close second to Ed or maybe even surpassing him, Mei knew more about Al than anyone else in the world.

He stepped closer to her, caressing her cheek and holding her face in his hand. He then leaned in as if he were about to kiss her, but instead stopped with their faces inches apart. Looking straight into her eyes, he said, "I told you that this is a wedding tradition, and it is. It has nothing to do with Brother and Winry's wedding, though."

He waited a few seconds for his words to sink in, and, sure enough, the confusion clouding Mei's eyes immediately dissolved as they widened in sudden realization. She let out a small gasp, staring at him in complete shock, and managed to choke out, "Al…"

The young man actually chuckled a bit at her reaction. His heart felt like it was about to burst with the surge of emotions flowing through him. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he let the words just flow out of his mouth. "Mei, will you marry me?"

He'd barely cut off his sentence before her lips met his. Instinctively and completely full of joy, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back. They stood there, kissing, for what seemed like forever, and they held on so tightly to each other that he actually picked her off the ground a couple inches, but they were, obviously, too busy to notice. Finally, they had to part so they could breathe, but that didn't stop Mei's tears from streaming down her cheeks.

Arms still wrapped around Al, she exclaimed, "Yes!" She kissed his cheek. "Yes!" His other cheek. Letting out a joyful sob, she cried, "Oh, my God, Al! Yes!" She kissed his lips again.

When they'd both managed to calm down, Al – with shaky hands due to all the adrenaline – gently took Mei's left hand, slipping the ring – which thankfully hadn't fallen out of his hand somehow – onto her finger as she continued to cry. The princess stared at that same hand for what seemed like ages, crying and giggling like crazy. With a huge grin on her face, she landed a moderate punch to Al's chest, "Idiot!"

Her new fiancé laughed at her exclamation, though he did rub the place where she'd hit him. "I think that was a better reaction than I ever could've hoped for."

"I'm glad I was able to amuse you," she shot back happily, still staring at her ring with a silly grin. She finally looked up at him, smiling wildly. "Al, how long have you…?"

"I've only had the ring for a couple days. Zampano brought it when they came over," he explained. "Oh, and don't worry, we've received both Ling and your mother's blessings, so we won't be going against their wishes."

Mei chuckled at her words being used on her. Then, something occurred to her, and she looked at him with pleasant astonishment. "You asked Mother…you've wanted to ask me for that long?"

"Even longer," he informed her, wrapping his arms around her once more. Smiling lovingly, he said, "I think that all this time, deep down, I knew I wanted to marry you."

Her cheeks turned bright red at this revelation, but she smiled, brushing a hand through his hair. He could feel the cold metal of the ring on his skin. "Tell you what. Since I'm living here with you, we can at least have the wedding in Xing."

Al nodded in agreement and, kissing his future wife, proclaimed, "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

 **God, I love writing about these two! I honestly love them, if not more, than Ed and Winry.**

 **Hope you enjoyed! If you did, please favorite/follow this story and/or me if you haven't already done that. If you have, your loyalty is greatly appreciated. Also, please leave me some reviews! I like hearing specific things about what you guys like or don't like about my writing.**

 **Have a great day! Again, I hope you liked this!**


	8. Loss

**Warning! This chapter is about to get hella depressing, though you've probably guessed from the title. Basically...have you ever wondered why Granny wasn't in that family picture in the last episode of Brotherhood?**

 **Get your tissues, folks.**

* * *

When Winry first woke up, she could see the early morning sunlight through her eyelids, which somehow made her even more tired with the prospect of having to get out of bed. Still, she knew that she was beyond the point of going back to sleep now. Slowly opening her eyes and letting them adjust to the light, she glanced at the small alarm clock on the bedside table. 6:35 – of course.

The young woman groaned in complaint, but managed to get out from under the covers and sit up on the bed, rubbing her eyes. Glancing down and placing a hand on her somewhat bulging stomach, she muttered, irritated, "Hope you're having sweet dreams in there, because Mommy's wide awake."

For whatever reason, as soon as she'd passed the first month or so of her pregnancy, Winry started having an absolutely terrible time trying to sleep in. Now, falling asleep was usually no trouble at all, but no matter what time of the night she lay down, she could never seem to stay sleeping past seven in the morning. She didn't even feel weird or anything. In the four months she'd been pregnant, she hadn't had any morning sickness (Thank God) and any aches and pains she did have weren't enough to keep her awake.

"A lot of women just have these weird little things happen when they're pregnant," Granny had explained to her nonchalantly, looking somewhat sympathetic. "Yours is just that you can't sleep that long."

 _God, this is going to be a long nine months,_ the mechanic thought miserably. She knew that, in the end, it was all going to be more than worth it when her and Edward's little boy or girl or possibly both ( _Good God…)_ came into the world, but if this was going to happen every time she got pregnant, then maybe they should just stick to one kid.

Speaking of Ed, the alchemist lay sound asleep, looking so nice and comfortable on the other side of the bed that his wife was considering hitting him with a wrench and waking him up out of spite. Still, she knew she couldn't ever do that, unless he'd done something extra stupid. Al had once told her that he thought that, while his soul was bonded to armor, Ed had slept longer in order to sustain his brother's body on the other side of the Gate. Winry wasn't sure if this was plausible or not, but if it was, then it was quite possible that Ed was sleeping extra for her now that she was carrying his child. Despite having been waking up early, she hadn't found herself to be tired during the day. Maybe it was his way of contributing for now.

Winry managed a small loving smile at her sleeping husband, then sighed exasperatingly. _Guess I'll go help Granny with breakfast._

As she made her way down the stairs to the kitchen, she realized that she couldn't detect the smell of bacon and gravy that normally spread all throughout the house in the morning. This didn't really alarm her though. Six-thirty was actually the earliest she'd woken up in a while, so it was quite possible that Pinako hadn't even started cooking yet, especially since everyone else usually didn't wake up until around eight. Still, the old lady was bound to be up preparing the pans and such.

Except she wasn't. Winry furrowed her eyebrows at the empty kitchen – all pans, plates, utensils, and food laying untouched in the normal storage spaces, everything strangely silent except for the morning birds' song outside.

 _That's strange,_ the young woman thought. _Maybe she decided to go to the market this morning. She does that sometimes._

The idea calmed her, but she still placed a hand on her stomach, something she found she did when she was nervous, as if her unborn child could somehow cure her anxiety. She made her way back upstairs, something that wouldn't be so easily done in the upcoming months, and repeated the thought in her mind as she approached her grandmother's room. It was quite possible Pianko wasn't feeling too well. In her whole life, Winry had only seen the woman sick maybe once or twice, and even then, it was only a small head cold, but Granny was getting older and, as much as the plucky spirit wished to deny it, she was losing some of her bite.

Taking a deep breath, Winry softly knocked on the door. "Granny?"

There was no response from the other side, which only made her more nervous. Hesitantly, she turned the doorknob and walked inside. Being on the opposite side of the house as her and Ed's, there wasn't nearly as much light coming through the window in Granny's room, but there was just enough for her to see.

Despite living in the house her entire life, Winry rarely ever ventured into her grandmother's room, mostly because she'd never had reason too. In the few times she'd visited though, the room remained constant – a queen-sized bed, a dresser with a few pictures of Winry's parents and uncle resting on top, a vanity (which she knew for a fact Pianko never used), and a small closet. Winry could pick out these elements through the dim light and was also able to see the tiny figure of Granny lying snuggly under the covers of her bed, eyes closed in sleep.

Winry felt a wave of relief wash over her. Her grandma wasn't M.I.A. Now at ease, she walked slowly across the room to the other side of the bed, speaking softly. "Granny? Hey, are you not feeling good or something?"

The woman didn't show any acknowledgement of her granddaughter's words, continuing to lie still and silent. Winry _had_ whispered pretty quietly, so it was possible she didn't even hear her being in such a deep sleep.

"Granny…" Still speaking softly, Winry reached Granny's side, bending over despite being slightly top heavy. "Hey…" She reached out to shake her awake.

As soon as her hand touched her grandmother's shoulder, her entire body suddenly turned to ice – much like how the old woman's felt. Even through her nightgown, her skin felt unnaturally cold, too cold to be considered anywhere near healthy.

"Granny…" Winry began to shake the small woman, panic beginning to spread from her chest. Her hands began to shake. "Hey, Granny…"

Still no response. Pianko looked as if she were in the deepest sleep one could ever have, which only made Winry's stomach grow heavier than it already was. Tears beginning to well up in her eyes, she shook harder. "Come on…. Wake up…Granny, we need to get you a doctor…W…Wake up…."

Then, suddenly, something overtook her, and she stopped and listened. Leaning in, she focused her hearing as much as she could….

She counted. 1…2…3…4….

Thirty seconds. Nothing.

No breathing.

No heartbeat.

The expecting mother could now feel the tears silently streaming down her cheeks. She slowly stood up, staring at her still grandmother with wide eyes and beginning to hyperventilate. Backing away, she said to herself, _No. She was fine yesterday. She wasn't sick or hurt. Me and Mei…we helped her make dinner last night. She yelled at Ed for not doing his chores. She helped me with that leg for Mr. Bernard…This is some kind of mistake. She can't…There's no way she's…_

"ED!"

She rushed towards the door to go get her husband, now choking back horrible sobs. She was only halfway across the room when she heard Edward call out in a somewhat panicked voice, "Winry!?"

He met her at a full sprint just as she was exiting Pinako's bedroom. Despite having just got out of bed, he was quite awake, looking at his wife with wide, fearful eyes. Holding her face in his hands, he asked, worried, "What's wrong!? Are you alright!? Is it the baby!?"

"Granny…" she choked out, returning his wide-eyed expression. "She's…She's not breathing…"

Ed somehow donned an even more horrified expression at this sudden news, it obviously being the last thing he'd expected to hear. He stared at her in shock for about five seconds before glancing through the door and rushing into the bedroom to confirm her statement. Winry stood outside for a couple more seconds to take a few deep breaths, becoming slightly lightheaded with shock. This quickly passed, however, and she swiftly followed her husband inside. Ed knelt on the bed beside the tiny woman, performing chest compressions with a scared, yet fiery look in his eyes.

"What's going on?"

Winry whirled around to see Al standing in the doorway with Mei right behind him, both of them with worried looks in their eyes. No doubt they'd been woken up by her scream as well. They were breathing heavily from running up the stairs. Alphonse's face morphed with even more concern when he saw his sister-in-law's probably red, tear-stained face.

"Al! Help me!" Edward called from the bed, still performing CPR.

It was then that the younger Elric's attention turned to the scene at hand, and his face, too, grew incredibly horrified at what he was seeing. As he rushed to aid his brother, Mei also saw what was happening and gasped, clasping her hands over her mouth with terrified eyes. "Oh, no…"

Al took over Ed's CPR, the older man having obviously grown tired. Through the compressions, he looked at the grandmother's face with a very similar expression as his brother – hardened, but visibly cracked. Still, his voice came out sounding calm and even somewhat hopeful. "Come on, Granny…You can't do this…"

"That's right!" Ed yelled, glaring at the woman defiantly. He spoke his next words more softly. "If you think this is how you're gonna go out, you have another thing coming. You hear?"

Sadly, Granny didn't seem to be motivated by the brothers' words, remaining unresponsive and her heart refusing to beat.

"Keep going, Al," Ed encouraged, though his lips were pursed.

His younger brother nodded slightly, fear having returned to his eyes. "Right."

Winry had been standing near the doorway the whole time, watching the two brothers roughly compress her grandmother's chest in order to get her heart going. She was no longer sobbing, but long streams of tears still flowed freely down her face, even though her mind felt completely void. _This is a dream. It has to be. Just one bad dream…_

Mei, probably feeling just as useless watching her husband work vigorously on the woman, drew close to her sister-in-law, wrapping her arms around her in a hug and placing Winry's head on her shoulder as she stroked her hair to comfort her. As they watched the scene, the former princess whispered, "It's going to be okay. They can do it…"

She didn't sound entirely convinced of her own words.

Edward took over CPR duties once again, leaving the other three to watch in trepidation. For the next minute or so, they all sat there in heavy silence except for the older Elric's grunts as he did the compressions.

Suddenly, Alphonse's eyes widened, like he'd just realized something. "Brother, get back for a second."

Ed looked at his younger sibling in surprise and confusion. "Al…?"

"Just do it."

The slight determination in his brother's voice was enough to get him to back off, though very hesitantly. Alphonse stood up on his knees, a firm look in his eyes, and clapped his hands together, alchemical sparks shooting from between them. The first thought in Winry's mind made her heart drop even further into her stomach, and Mei's eyes went wide with fear, her obviously thinking the same thing, as she exclaimed, "Al!"

"It's alright," he assured them calmly, his voice a bit hoarse from either having just woken up or all the emotion he was feeling. He looked at Ed, explaining to him as well as the girls, "If I can charge up the particles in the air, the electricity might be able to start up her heart."

Edward, immediately understanding, nodded, his brow creased in exhaustion and worry. Quickly getting off the bed, he said, "Go for it."

With this go-ahead, Al quickly put his newly-charged hands over Granny's heart. A sharp blue light flickered from the small transmutation, and her tiny body jerked a bit with the shock. In the split second this happened, something occurred to Winry. She might not have been completely educated in science, but she knew how electricity worked. She noticed that in his haste, Al hadn't taken the precaution of getting off the wooden bed like his brother had….

Before she could shout out a warning, the young man fell to the ground, his body clenched up and his face contorted in pain.

"Al!" The other three shouted in concern. Mei was by him in an instant, cradling his head in her lap, while Ed and Winry rushed over and stood over him, all of them even more frightened than before. His sister-in-law was back in tears. _Please, God. You can't take them both in one day._

Thankfully, the alchemist was clearly still breathing. Wincing a bit with his eyes still closed, he muttered, "I'm…I'm okay…"

"You idiot!" Edward scolded, his voice cracking and his eyes filled with both immense relief and irritation. "You're not invulnerable to this stuff anymore! You'd think after all these years you'd remember that!"

"You could've killed yourself," Winry agreed with her husband through her sobs, though her voice was much more meek and fearful sounding.

"I'm sorry…" the younger man managed. He finally opened his eyes a bit, and though they were narrowed, his concern was clearly visible. "Did…it work?"

Ed quickly turned his attention back to Granny, putting two of his fingers to her neck to check for a pulse. All four of them sat in complete silence for the next few tension-filled seconds as he tried to detect something. Eventually, though, he grit his teeth in frustration. "Dammit!"

He went to start CPR again, but before he could, the words just flowed out of Winry's mouth. Looking down at the floor, tears blurring her vision, she murmured, "That's enough, Ed…"

She couldn't see him, but she knew he probably looked at her in surprise. His voice cracked with emotion. "But, Winry…"

 _"_ _Please."_ She gripped the foot of the bed, slowly dropping to her knees. Her small baby bump rested slightly on her legs. Granny may have been good at hiding it, but Winry knew how excited she'd been when she found out her granddaughter was pregnant. She'd given her and Ed some helpful tips and had even suggested a few names along the way. Becoming a great-grandma was one of the few things that she was looking forward to, and now…

"Just…stop."

Deep down inside, Winry knew from the second she felt her grandmother's cold skin and failed to hear her heartbeat that the old woman would never open her eyes again, and Ed and Al, of all people, knew that too. Still, this was the woman who had raised the three of them after their parents passed away, even though the brothers weren't even blood. This was the woman who'd taught Winry how to make automail, the craft that she loved so dear and allowed her to help countless people, including her husband. This was the woman who nursed the Elric brothers back to health after their failed human transmutation and supported them and welcomed them with open arms whenever they returned to Risembool from their journey to regain their bodies. She was snarky and harsh, but she was also so very loving and gentle in her own Pinako way. What were they supposed to do? Just let her go like that…?

After a few seconds of her words sinking in, Al took a shaky breath. Winry looked up just in time to see him choke back a sob and quickly cover his eyes with his arm, gritting his teeth in anguish. This made Mei begin to cry too. As tears streamed down her face, she leaned down and kissed her husband's forehead, though it probably wasn't too much comfort at the moment.

Looking defeated, Ed slid off the bed and plopped down on the floor next to his wife, staring at the floor in shame. Since he'd got up in a hurry, his golden hair was still down and not pulled back into its normal ponytail, causing it to cover his already shadowed eyes. Clenching his fists tightly and not daring to look at Winry, he muttered, "I'm sorry…" He bowed his head lower, beginning to shake and breathe heavily. "I'm so sorry…"

Winry bowed her head as well, letting out a guttural sob. Edward was pretty much her rock, and he never liked to show how upset he was in front of her, so seeing him cry now...it was too much for her to bear. She threw herself at him, and he wrapped his arms around in her in an instant. They buried their heads in each other's shoulders, gripping their shirts and just crying.

That's how they stayed for a good while: the four of them just huddled together, balling their eyes out and trying to wake themselves up from the horrible nightmare…

* * *

"Hello? Anyone home?" A familiar, motherly voice came from the entryway.

Winry continued to braid the crust on top of her apple pie, but called out, "In here, Anais!"

Said woman entered the kitchen a few seconds later. Anais was probably one of the sweetest ladies in all of Risembool. She was a mother of one of Winry and boys' old schoolmates and, despite being in her late fifties, she barely looked a day over forty. She gave Winry her warm smile, one that reminded the young woman of Trisha Elric at times, and walked over to the table. "Mm. Well doesn't that look good. Edward and Alphonse must be pretty excited."

Winry chuckled a bit. "I honestly don't get it. I make this so much, you'd think they'd be sick of it by now." She put the last strand of crust on top and carefully placed it in the oven. Turning back toward Anais and brushing the flour off her hands, she asked, "Did you need something? Run out of spices again?"

"Not this time, sweetie," the older woman assured her, grinning good-naturedly and holding up her hand. Her smile turned somewhat sad, however, as she revealed a large envelope in her hand and set it on the table. "I'm actually here to give this to you."

Winry raised an eyebrow, her heart suddenly feeling heavy. "What is it?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but…a couple months ago, your grandmother gave me this and asked me to give it to you if…if anything happened to her."

"Granny did?"

The young woman found herself once again placing her hands on her growing stomach. It had been a month and a half since Pinako had passed away that awful morning. They'd had her funeral less than a week later, and her granddaughter had been pretty surprised at the turnout. Despite being so last second, many friends from all over the country had made it in their all-black garb to pay their respects to the great Rockbell. Many of Edward's old military comrades (Roy, Riza, and Major Armstrong among many others), Gracia and Elicia Hughes, the LeCoultes, Paninya – they were all there. Ling had sadly been unable to get away from his duties as Emperor, and, even then, he didn't even receive Mei's letter until a day or so after the funeral, but he sent his deepest condolences and fully expressed his sorrow in his follow up letter.

Since then, her, Ed, Al, and Mei had tried to get back into the normal swing of things, even though the "normal" normal was completely gone, a piece of it forever missing. Still, they knew that Granny wouldn't be happy to see them all just moping around because of her. Hell, she would probably yell at them all for being morons and sissies. So, life carried on. It had to. Even though Winry wanted desperately to just curl up in a ball and lay in bed, she knew she couldn't. She was reminded of that every time her little baby kicked in her stomach, which had actually started up not long after Granny's passing. It wasn't just herself she was looking out for anymore.

"Yes," Anais answered, looking at the envelope almost nostalgically. She then turned her attention to Winry. "I was going to give it to you sooner, but I figured you would need time for everything to settle down."

"Yeah. Thanks," Winry said, saddened once again by the thought of her grandma. She'd been trying to block it out.

The other woman noticed her hands on her stomach and decided to change the subject. "I swear, that baby belly of yours gets bigger every time I see you. You'll be ready to pop soon enough."

The mother-to-be managed a small smile at this. "Let's hope it doesn't happen like that. I'm already nervous about it as it is."

"Oh, knowing you, you'll be fine, dear. It's Edward I'm worried about." Anais winked at this, which actually got a laugh out of Winry. She'd thought a lot about the fact that she was actually going to give birth in a couple of months. She remembered all those years ago when she'd helped deliver Alfred on that stormy night in Rush Valley and how hysterical Ed had been at the time. God knew what he would be like when it was his own child being born. The funny thought was enough to lift Winry's spirits.

"Well, that was all I came here for." Heading out of the kitchen and towards the door, the older woman called out, "You have a nice night, now."

"You too!" Winry called back before turning her attention to the envelope. She almost felt afraid to touch it. Granny wanted her to have this after she died, but why didn't she just give them to her beforehand instead of giving them to Anais?

Taking a deep breath, she hesitantly reached out and picked it up. Her mind raced with all the possibilities of what she would find inside, but she found herself stumped. Finally, when she looked in, she saw what looked like tiny pieces of paper. Upon taking them out, however, she discovered that they were four tinier envelopes, and, laying them out on the table, she saw that each one had a name written on the front – Winry, Edward, Alphonse, and Mei - in very familiar, neat cursive.

Letters…from Granny.

* * *

 _Hello, Dear._

 _If Anais gave this letter to you like I asked her to and you're reading it, then it is safe to assume that I'm probably dead. I'm sure that it hasn't been long since I left you, and I know that you're probably hurting a lot, and I am so sorry for that, sweetheart, but I have faith that you and the boys are doing fine despite that._

 _Now, a sappy letter such as this might come as a surprise to you, especially coming from me, and I don't blame you in the slightest. Still, even an old fart like me has to let some feelings off her chest every once in a while._

 _I'm getting old, Winry, and as much as I hate to admit it, I'm reaching the end of the path. How far it is ahead of me, I don't know, but I'm getting there. I'd like to really speak my mind to all of you before I go out, but you know me. I've never really been the best at expressing my feelings, at least when I'm sober. I guess that's something me and that shrimp husband of yours have in common._

 _It astounds me how fast and vibrantly you've grown. After your parents were killed, I wasn't sure how things were going to turn out with me raising you. Sure, your father turned out alright, but I also had your grandfather. Not to mention I had no experience raising a girl. Then Trisha passed away, and we got Edward and Alphonse. That wasn't too bad, though, because you were there to help me raise them._

 _Sometimes, I think about those times when it was just the four of us – you, me, and the boys – and I find myself missing it. I miss sitting around the table at dinner, and I miss tucking you three into bed. Then, I remember all the astounding things that have happened since, and I tell myself that it's alright for those times to only be memories. Watching you grow in your skill as an engineer was definitely one of the highlights. Seeing you learn and make mistakes and try your damn hardest with every project brought a new light to a job that had honestly become rather boring to me. I couldn't have been more proud then when you found yourself an apprenticeship with Mr. Garfiel. To see you so accomplished and happy with the deeds you were doing was more than I could've ever hoped for._

 _Well, almost everything. You want to explain to me how you're already married? And Edward Elric, of all people! Not to mention you're already expecting a baby. A baby! Time sure flies when you get old._

 _Also, Al may take all the credit, but I definitely bet on it first._

 _Joking aside, my dear, I can't imagine any other woman better suited to be a mother. I know it's a scary thought, but at least listen to me on this one. When the time finally comes to meet that little guy, you'll be fine – you and Edward both._

 _Isn't it amazing how you feel like there's so much you can say, but you don't know what it is? Honestly, I've spent the past five minutes staring at this page and not knowing what else to write. Maybe I'm finally going senile._

 _Winry, you are more beautiful than you realize, both inside and out, and I can assure you Edward can attest to that as well. You carry the determination, grace, perseverance, and kindness that your parents did before you, and I know that if they could see you now, they would be so immensely proud of you. I swear to God, when I meet them up there, I'll be blabbing on about you for a few days. They better be prepared._

 _I know how painful this whole thing is for you, dear, but both you and I know that you of all people can fight through it. Even if you have trouble, you can bet I didn't just leave you alone. Ed, Al, Mei, even that little baby in your tummy – they'll always be there whenever you need them, and you'll always be there for them. Just stay strong and keep moving forward. I certainly look forward to seeing where all of you keep going from here._

 _I love you so very much, Winry. Don't ever forget or doubt that._

 _Goodbye for now._

 _~ Granny_

Upon seeing her grandmother's signature at the end, Winry curled up into a ball on her bed and cried for a good long while. Eventually, with one arm cradling her stomach and the other holding the letter to her heart, she fell asleep, the afternoon sun casting a warm glow through her eyelids.

* * *

Edward pounded his fist on the table, clattering the pans and causing the letter in front of him to fly up somewhat before gliding back down. He squeezed his eyes tightly, causing the tears to come dripping out. "Dammit…"

That beansprout knew. She knew something was up, but she didn't tell them. Why? It's not like it really made much of a difference, but still…he wasn't even able to…thank her…

"Ed?"

The former alchemist looked up to see Winry standing in the doorway, looking at him with concern in her red, somewhat swollen eyes. No doubt she'd been crying. The mere thought was enough to make his heart sink lower. He thought back to that morning when he just held her while she balled and screamed her lungs out, all because he…he couldn't…

He quickly wiped his eyes, turning back to Granny's letter. He couldn't even find it in him to smile, which probably didn't help convince his wife of his next statement. "I'm fine."

Yeah, she definitely wasn't fooled. Giving him a sad, understanding smile, she walked over, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a hug. He returned her gesture and, since she was standing and he was sitting, rested his head against her baby bump. Taking a deep breath, he felt a heartbeat reverberate against his head, which managed to comfort him a bit, even though he wasn't sure if it belonged to his wife or their child.

 _I may have pulled your leg a few times, but believe me when I say that you are going to be the most wonderful father, Edward._

 _Take care of my granddaughter. I know she's fully capable of fending for herself, but even she needs help every so often, and you're the only person I can think of to do that._

Granny knew all about Ed's worries about being a dad. He was afraid of not being there for his kid when it mattered most or maybe even for the little moments. He was afraid that he wasn't going to be good enough and completely fail in the role. He'd forgiven Hohenheim for leaving him and Al when they were little, but he still didn't consider the man "Father of the Year," and he was terrified that he would follow in his old man's footsteps – mostly absent with his children hating him. Not only that, but with his own father missing for most of his childhood, Ed really had nothing to go on to really tell him what he was supposed to do. He didn't know how to raise a family. Who was he kidding?

He felt a small bump against his head – the baby moving inside Winry's stomach. Ed's heart couldn't help but do summersaults every time he felt that. That was _his_ child. He'd helped create that life in there…with his wife. His wife – the woman who'd been his best friend for as long as he could remember, whose arms were wrapped securely and lovingly around him in comfort, even though she was hurting ten times more than he was. His fifteen-year-old self would probably have an aneurism if he saw the sight. The thought was enough to make him smile a little.

His younger self might have called the whole thing a trick – not just because he was married to Winry and that they were about to have a baby together, but because of the fact that he had such a life at all. Back then, he'd been so focused on getting Al his body back, to fix the mistake he made and return his brother to normal, that he'd never really thought about getting older and having a family. Sometimes, he felt like his and Al's journey would never end and they wouldn't get the chance. Then, when all the stuff with Father and the homunculi started, he'd been so sure that he'd end up dying on the Promised Day trying to stop them and trying to protect everyone.

He hugged Winry tighter. _This_ was what he fought to protect. He fought for everyone's right to a happy life with the people he loved. He fought so he could have that happy life too, and after all that blood and suffering, he was going to enjoy it damn it.

It wasn't all going to be a smooth ride though. He knew that. Life was never that fair. He was going to be a father in a couple of months whether he was ready or not, and, now that he thought about it, he had so much less to worry about at this point than Winry. She was probably just as scared, happy, and clueless as he was. The only thing for them to do now was treasure every single second with their family and do what they do best – wing it.

It wasn't just Winry and the baby though. Ed had to look after Al and Mei too. They were his little brother and sister after all, and the four (soon to be five) of them were the ones who made up such a crazy family. They were in this together – for better or for worse.

Losing Granny was definitely something that would hang over them for God knew how long, but it wouldn't stop them from moving forward. That's what she would want.

Life is short and unpredictable. It's unfair, and you can't just get happiness for nothing. Ed knew all this, and he swore that he was never going to take this new life he had for granted.

* * *

Alphonse stood outside the kitchen, leaning up against the wall. It wasn't like he was eavesdropping on his brother and sister-in-law, since they weren't even saying anything. He just felt like he needed to be near them without intruding. After reading the letters, he was sure that all of them were in a similar state of mind. _He_ was at least newly depressed.

 _Look after those two crazies, will you? I know it's not the easiest job in the world, but I'm sure you can handle it. You've been doing it for over twenty-one years after all._

 _Not the easiest job? You're damned right it's not. You knew that better than anyone, Granny,_ he thought, smiling sadly.

All throughout his life, he'd sometimes felt like the only sanity in an asylum when the three of them were together. Ed and Winry were always so hot-tempered, most of the time with each other, that it would get them into trouble a lot – again, with each other. Al was always the calm one, always the mediator. Still, it couldn't be helped. Their extreme emotions usually came from the right place, which was why he never got mad. The passion of those two was one of the reasons he loved them so much.

Equivalent exchange. There must always be a balance. Nine times out of ten – you get what you give. Where there's good, there's, unfortunately, evil. As one would say in Xingese philosophy, there is always a ying and a yang. To combat their craziness, Al always had to provide the calm.

He never really minded, though, even if it was a bit hard to keep cool sometimes.

 _Who knows, Granny?_ he thought to the woman. _Maybe they'll mellow out a bit once they become parents._

Oh, well. He could dream.

* * *

 _Even the mother hen needs a guardian. I know you love Alphonse very much, dear. Watch over him for me._

"Al?" Mei spoke quietly as she walked up to him against the doorway.

Her husband looked at her and, seeing her concerned expression, gave her a small, reassuring smile. "Hey."

She could see the sadness in his eyes though, a sight that just about broke her heart. Coming closer, she wrapped her arms around him in a hug and lay her head in the crook of his neck, something he gladly returned, kissing the top of her head.

"Brother and Winry are in the kitchen," he whispered to her. "I'm trying not to disturb them."

She nodded somewhat in understanding. "Did you…read your letter?"

"Yeah." A small pause. "Did you?"

"Mm-hm." She sighed in exasperation, suddenly feeling tired. "All of us are just a huge mess."

Al chuckled lightly. "What else is new?" He paused once more, as if fully feeling the weight of what he was going to say. "We'll get through this though. That's what families do. Everything will turn out alright in the end."

 _I know you've had trouble adjusting to living over here, and no doubt you've felt somewhat out of place from our little group. Know this, though, Mei Dear, even though you were not here through childhood or through all the trials and tribulations, you are no less family than the rest of us. You pretty much signed your death warrant as soon as you accepted Alphonse's proposal. Honestly, I pity you._

Her family. She felt as if she were always meant to be here with Al, Ed, Winry, and Granny, and they had welcomed her into their life-long relationship without any hesitation. To be with the man she loved dearly, to have a brother and sister-in-law who were crazy but awesome, to have one badass of a grandmother, and to have a baby being added to the mix…she was a part of something big, something that was soon going to be even bigger, and she honestly couldn't be happier. Yes, it would be tough sometimes, but they would always be there for each other, no matter what.

She smiled at her husband's words. "Right."

* * *

 **Well, I hope that provided at least some levity after that onslaught of feels.**

 **Anyway, to address the elephant in the room - yes, my "Watching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" fic was taking down by admins due to copyright reasons. I'm pretty much just as disappointed as all you guys are. If you want some more info on that (wink, wink), just PM me.**

 **That's all for this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or myself if you haven't already. If you have, I am eternally grateful for the support! Also, please leave a review to tell me any specific things you liked and/or disliked. I like me some specifics to help me for future chapters.**

 **Once again, I hope you enjoyed. Have a wonderful day!**


	9. Rockslide

**Back again with another chapter!**

 **Ed and Al have been out of the military for a while now, but that doesn't mean they aren't willing to step up to the plate when people are in trouble. When there's a train accident further up the tracks from Risembool, they head up there with some neighbors to see what they can do. This event might also bring out some pent up feelings...**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Here we go, Aaron! Yum, yum!"

The baby looked up at his mother with bright eyes and a wide grin, excited for his breakfast of cut up pancakes and eggs. Before he could grab at the plate in her hand, though, Winry pulled it back somewhat and gave him a stern glance, shaking her finger. "Little bites, alright?"

He nodded his little head, reaching eagerly. "Alwight!"

Satisfied with this answer, she set the food down on the tray of his high chair. Aaron managed to follow his mother's instructions for the first few bites, but then began to stuff multiple pieces into his mouth at once, his cheeks puffing out like those of a chipmunk.

"Hey!" Edward chastised, leaning in to emphasize the point to the boy, wagging his finger like his wife. "No, no. You'll choke. Little bites."

"Okay," the young Elric said, simultaneously stuffing another five chunks of pancake into his mouth.

His parents slumped in their chairs, looking tired and fed up in every sense of the word. Looking at each other with drained eyes, they said in unison, "Chew good…"

Alphonse and Mei couldn't help but chuckle at the couple's predicament, as well as their nephew's cuteness.

"Don't worry. I'm sure he'll learn eventually," Al assured them, pulling Ed up in his seat.

His older brother lay his head on the table in exasperation. "No matter how many times we tell him, he just keeps on doing it."

"He's not even two, Ed."

"Yeah, but I thought repetition was the way to do it with little kids! That's how you make it stick with them!"

"Well," Mei interjected, looking thoughtful, "my mother always says that no matter how many times you tell a child something, they need to really learn a lesson before they fully understand. When I was a little, she always told me to never play near the river after we'd had a lot of rain, but that was always when all the interesting frogs and lizards would come out, so I would anyway. One day, I slipped and fell into the high waters. A farmer boy was there nearby and managed to grab me before I was swept down the river, but it was enough to scare me out of my wits, and I never did it again."

"So…" Ed looked at her, somewhat weary. "You're saying that Aaron needs to choke on something so he'll learn how to eat his food?"

The Xingese girl, realizing what her words had implied, quickly held up her hands and shook her head furiously, eyes wide. "That's just what my mom said! I'd never want something like that to happen to Aaron!"

"That's something we can all agree on," Al added, smiling at the toddler, who was still blissfully eating his breakfast.

Winry smiled lovingly at her baby boy. His eating habits frustrated her to no end, but she would rather teach him the long way than risk anything that could take that tiny, yet beautiful smile away from her. His hair was beginning to really grow out, clearly a radiant golden color, and with eyes nearly the exact same color, he looked like a mini clone of his father. Speaking of which, she saw that Ed had a very similar adoring look on his face. Him being the protective daddy he was, she knew that he had the same feelings as her. Al and Mei were definitely a pretty protective aunt and uncle as well.

A loud, urgent sounding knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. Ed began to stand up to go answer it, but before he even had the chance, the sound of said door opening and closing and heavy footsteps reverberated from down the hallway. Finally, their visitor revealed himself in the doorframe.

"Jonah?" Winry asked in surprise, immediately worried by the look on the boy's face. "What's wrong?"

The twelve-year-old leaned against the wall, panting. Staring at them intently, he told them, "My dad sent me to come get you. There was…a rockslide up in the mountains. The train from Kaumary was caught up in it…. It's completely buried. All the men in town are heading up there to look for survivors."

The two brothers were out of their seats before he even finished. Rushing past him, they took their coats from the rack on the wall, hastily putting them on. Winry knew the look on their faces all too well – the faces that were prepared for the worst but determined to do something to fix it. She'd seen it on so many people before, especially on her husband and brother. In all honesty, she felt like she'd seen it too many times for her own good. Still, there were people in trouble, and where there were people in trouble, Ed and Al were always there to help.

"They're gathering up all the horses they can," Jonah informed them, "but it's still going to take you guys awhile to get up there."

"Better get a move on then," Ed said, all playfulness in his voice gone and replaced with dead seriousness. He fluffed his collar, readying himself for the autumn chill.

"I'm coming too." Mei rushed to get her coat as well, her eyebrows furrowed in worry and determination. "I might not be able to dig anyone out, but I can at least help the injured."

"Too!" Aaron, who'd been watching the whole scene with fascination and somewhat confusion, turned to his father and raised his arms, signaling to be picked up. "Ou-side!"

Edward's attention immediately turned to his son at the sound of his voice. Managing a small smile at the boy, the former alchemist leaned over his high chair, ruffling what little hair he had. "Sorry, not today. You stay here and look after Mommy, okay?" He kissed his tiny forehead. "Daddy be back soon."

"Ed…" Winry stood up as well, worry clenching her heart, not just for the people on the train but for her husband, brother, and sister as well. Ed and Al would always get called out during the spring whenever the creek would begin to flood or the town was hit with a bad storm, and even though she knew they had it under control, she always had that one fear in the back of her mind that something would happen.

"It'll be okay," her husband assured her. He gave her a quick kiss and an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but I don't know when we'll be home tonight. Don't worry, though, okay?"

"You _do_ know who you're talking to, right?" She returned his gesture with another, somewhat longer, kiss. Holding his face in her hands, she looked at him sternly. "Go help those people."

His eyes sparked with determination. "Right."

After telling all of them to be careful, she watched the four of them run down the road until they disappeared further into town. Her son, who'd remained silent for the past few minutes as he picked at his pancakes, finally turned to her with that innocent look in his eyes. "Where go?"

She smiled at him, though her worry tried to pull it down. "There are some people in trouble, so Daddy, Uncle Al, and Aunt Mei went to go help them."

Picking him up and holding him close, she glanced out the window once more, staring at the horizon they had disappeared over. "Why does Mommy have to be so useless when it really matters?"

* * *

"It happened around four this morning," Isaiah, Jonah's dad, explained to them, yelling so he could be heard over the loud clopping of their galloping horses. "The conductor managed to escape from the back carriage since it was only tipped over, and it took him three hours to get down here with a fractured hip. He said the train hadn't blown its whistle and wasn't going particularly fast, so he's not quite sure what caused the collapse of the mountainside. He also said that the rest of the carriages were completely buried in debris, though I don't know how he could see anything, considering how dark it must have been."

Alphonse furrowed his eyebrows, staring at the terrain ahead of them. The brisk morning autumn air bit at his face, which unfortunately didn't distract him from his troubling thoughts. In fact, it made them worse. To be wrecked in the mountains under tons of rock in this freezing air…

Mei perfectly summed up his thoughts. Lips pursed, she said, "Those people have been buried for nearly five hours now. Who knows how many are hurt or how many have…"

She stopped herself, but the implications of her trailing off were clear. Though it was almost inevitable, it was something none of them wanted to think about. They wanted to believe that everyone would come out of the accident alright.

"On the plus side, the guy told us that there weren't many passengers to begin with," Isaiah added, though he still looked troubled. "Twenty at the most. So…"

He didn't finish his sentence either. Still, Edward nodded grimly. "All the same, we better hurry."

The whole trip up into the mountain pass took them a little over an hour at a full gallop. Once they actually began entering the pathway, though, they moved forward at a slow trot, not wanting to disturb the cliffsides that loomed over either side of them. They didn't have very far to go, however. The accident scene was just beyond the first wide curve in the track.

Al's heart dropped to the bottom of his stomach as he viewed the devastation. Jonah wasn't exaggerating when he said the train had been buried. From what he could tell, the locomotive along with all its carriages had been completely tipped over sideways, with huge piles of rubble on top of them that only showed small glimpses of polished metal and wood. Some men who had left the village before they had were already at work shoveling at the rock, but the looks on their faces were anything but hopeful. Even though he was usually an optimist, the alchemist couldn't help but share the same sentiment.

He looked over to the distressed looks on his brother and wife's faces, as well as Isaiah's, and he mentally slapped himself. No. There _had_ to be a ray of hope in all this. There always was, and he wasn't going to give up on all the people still trapped inside the train. They weren't all dead. They couldn't be.

Rolling his shoulders back and trying to look as confident as possible, the youngest Elric shouted to the working men, "Everyone, step back from the train!"

Since Al had created quite the spectacles in preventing floods and rebuilding storm-devastated houses in the previous few years, the men knew fully well what he was capable of and very quickly moved back. As they did this, he accessed his situation. There were eight or nine cars to uncover besides the engine itself. He had to remove all the rubble without hurting anyone still alive inside or further disturbing the mountainside, though, by the looks of things, it didn't look like they'd be getting another avalanche anytime soon. He took a deep breath. He'd performed many transmutations much bigger than this, in addition to moving a ton more rock than this. This wasn't going to be difficult at all.

"You got this, Al," Ed encouraged his brother from behind him, sounding more determined at the sight of his sibling's hope and confidence.

With this show of support, Alphonse clapped his hands together, the sound almost echoing throughout the pass, and placed them on the nearest pile of rubble covering the engine. Immediately, blue alchemic sparks shot everywhere, and all the way down the train, the debris flowed away from the cars almost like waves. It occurred to him that the carriages were probably filled with rocks as well, so he made an attempt to take those out too. Within thirty seconds, while it was still on its side, the train was unburied.

"Nice work." Isaiah gave him a small smile of approval before turning serious once more. Addressing the other men, he yelled, "Let's get a move on! Climb up into the windows and search for survivors!"

Edward didn't need to be told. Rushing toward the actual locomotive, he called out to his brother, "Al, let's get the driver!"

"Right!" Al exclaimed, beginning to climb up the front to reach the little window on the side. The two of them reached the opening around the same time and, nodding grimly at each other, took turns jumping down into the compartment.

Besides the dust, there were only a few bits of rock still left inside. All of the levers meant to run the train had been either snapped off or bent by the onslaught of debris that had poured in, and all of the gauges had their glass covers broken or cracked. Sitting slouched against the wall and what would've been the roof with his legs spread out was a middle-aged man wearing a very dusty black uniform and cap. His eyes were closed, and his chin rested on his chest.

The brothers exchanged a weary glance and came forward, both of them expecting the worst. Al knelt by him and put two fingers to the man's neck. He was filled with relief when he felt the driver's skin was still warm and a faint, but steady "bu-bump" against his fingers. "He's alive."

Ed let out a small sigh of relief. Leaning closer to the man, he said, "Sir? Can you hear me?"

His words stirred no response. Gingerly shaking the man's shoulder, Al repeated his brother's question. "Sir?"

Finally, the driver exhaled deeply and weakly lifted his head. He slowly opened his eyes, but it took him a few seconds to really notice the two young men in front of him. Once he did, he tried to sit himself up straighter, but his arms seemed to be too weak.

"It's alright. We're going to get you out of here," Alphonse informed him, gently holding him down so he wouldn't hurt himself. "How do you feel? Does it hurt anywhere?"

The older man's voice came out quiet and dry. He breathed deeply every couple of words. "I've certainly had…better days. My head…hurts…it feels like…there's a bunch of glass in it. I can't…feel my…legs."

"Well, don't you worry," Ed told him, giving him a small, reassuring smile. "We'll heal you up in no time. First, we've got to get you out."

Al looked over the man. His head didn't seem to be bleeding, so the feeling he had about glass was probably metaphorical – a concussion, if he had to guess. As for his legs…there could've been many different reasons for that. Ed was right, though. Before Al or Mei could heal this man, they had to get out of the engine, though they certainly couldn't go out the way they came.

Ed seemed to come to the same conclusion and, looking at his brother, said, "Like I always say…"

Al nodded. Walking over to the farther side of the engine – the bottom of the train, to be exact – and clapping his hands together, he said, "When you can't find a door, make your own."

That's exactly what he did. After creating and swinging the simple steel door open, the two brothers slung each of the man's arms around their shoulders and carefully walked him out into the sunlight. Seeing a group of men laying some people down, Ed called out, "Hey! This guy's alive! Make a spot for him!"

The men's eyes widened in surprise, but they rushed to do as the Elric asked. Once they'd laid a sheet down, Ed and Al gingerly set the man down on it. The driver closed his eyes and sighed a bit, basking in the morning sunlight hitting his face.

"I wouldn't do that," Al warned, causing the man to open his eyes. "If your head hurts, we don't want you falling asleep, okay?"

This didn't seem to please him, but he still nodded. The alchemist was just about to survey the man's wounds properly, when Ed's quiet, somewhat horrified voice muttered, "Those people…they're not all…?"

Al glanced up to see what his brother was looking at, and his stomach turned to lead. The people they'd seen the other men laying down were all set in a line and covered in white sheets – all five of them.

One of the men – Michael, a cattle farmer in town – pursed his lips and nodded sadly. "All of them show signs of broken ribs, and a few have broken necks or fractured skulls. We think they either died instantly or…" He swallowed heavily, "suffocated under the rocks that broke through the windows…"

Al looked down at the ground, clenching his fists. Those five people were dead. He knew that there was no way he could've known about or prevented the incident and he knew that there was no way he could help them if they were already dead, but...he still somehow felt responsible. He'd journeyed and studied all he could to learn all the secrets alchemy had to offer, and what did he have to show for it? He couldn't bring these people back. He couldn't help them at all…

That's when another voice interrupted his thoughts – the urgent voice of his wife. "Al!"

He quickly looked around, feeling somewhat panicked at not knowing what was wrong. Where _had_ Mei gone after he and Ed went for the driver? His nerves were quelled, if only slightly, when he saw the Xingese girl walking towards him, unharmed. However, his worry only escalated when he saw the small figure of a little boy in her arms and the troubled expression on her face.

Edward ran to meet her, his eyebrows furrowed deeply in concern. As he gingerly took the boy from her arms, she told him, "His pulse is very faint, but he's still alive. Marcus is getting his mother out now, but she's probably worse off than he is. They were both in the second-to-last carriage, right in front of the one the conductor was in. It mustn't have been hit as hard as the other ones."

The two of them rushed back over to Al, where Ed set the boy on a sheet next to the driver. The little guy didn't look more than four-years-old, and his short, skinny body was covered in all kinds of bruises and scrapes. Al frowned deeply at the good-sized crevice in his head – a fractured skull, he was sure.

He looked at his wife. "How does his mom look?"

Mei glanced at the ground sadly. "About the same as him, but…by her breathing and the indents I felt on her chest, I think she was a lot more buried than he was. I don't know if she'll…"

She stopped herself, but Alphonse understood perfectly. He glanced down at the beaten boy again. "Alright…"

"God, this is awful." On the other side of the covered line, Thomas muttered to his father, "Out of all weeks for Doctor Matthews to be away…"

Al clenched his fist. The man was right. He may have been able to heal wounds, but that was useless if he really didn't know what the wounds even were. He was no doctor.

Mei must have either sensed his distress or seen it written on his face, because she knelt by him and lay her head on his shoulder. "We have to try, Al. We might not be full-fledged doctors, but we're alkahestrists. That's gotta count for something, especially when these people need us. We have to do the best we can. That's all we _can_ do."

"That's right," Ed agreed, his eyes filled with determination. "Do whatever you can, Brother. I'm going to find you some more patients."

With that, he turned and ran back toward the train. Al took a deep breath, feeling newly confident. He might not have been able to help the dead, but there were still living people who needed him. Looking at his wife, he said, "You're more skilled then I am, so you take the little boy. I'll handle this guy."

She smiled a little bit at his new determination. Kissing his cheek in support, she told him, "We got this."

* * *

Winry was just on the brink of sleep when she heard the front door softly open and shut, followed by some footsteps downstairs. She'd been attempting to lie down while Aaron was taking his nap, both to get some much needed rest and to get her mind off her worries, but it seemed like that wasn't going to happen. She heard Ed call out, "Winry?"

"Up here," she answered, trying her best not to wake up the baby. Glancing at the small clock on the bedside table, she saw that it was only halfway past noon.

Her husband appeared in the doorway a minute later. His nose was still somewhat red from the cold air outside, and his clothes were covered in light dust and dirt. As he plopped on the bed with a huge sigh, she thought of scolding him for laying down when he was so dirty, but she decided against it when she saw the exhaustion and faraway look in his eyes. He closed them for a moment as he lay down, finally relaxing a bit.

"You're home earlier than I thought you would be," she noted, feeling worried for some reason. "Where's Al and Mei?"

"They're still up there," he answered, eyes still closed. "We got everyone out of the cars, so there wasn't really anything left for me to do. I couldn't heal or anything, so they sent me back down here."

After sitting in silence for a few seconds, she hesitantly asked, "So…how bad was it?"

Ed opened his eyes again and stared at the ceiling. His mouth formed a thin, straight line, and for about a minute, he didn't say anything, like he was afraid to tell her. Eventually, though, he said, "There were sixteen people on the train, not counting the guy who managed to hobble down here."

He sat up again, his legs hanging off the bed so he was facing away from her. Hanging his head a bit, he added with a sad voice, "Including him…there were four survivors."

Winry's heart sank as her worst fears were confirmed. "Only four?"

Turning his body a bit, she could finally see his distraught face, but he still refused to look at her as he nodded.

"Well…how are they?"

"The other three were in the ending cars, like the conductor. The driver survived, but Al said he had one hell of a concussion, probably. He did his best at trying to relieve the pressure from that, but…his legs had been buried under tons of rocks before Al cleared them out. Their circulation had been cut off for so long that there nothing he or Mei could do about it – all the tissue was already dead. They're saying he's going to have to have them amputated."

"How terrible…" Her heart ached for the man. It must have been awful to just have something you were so used to be stripped away from you just like that – just like what had happened to Ed and Al…

Wait a minute.

Winry looked at her husband, now determined. "I'll just have to give him a new set of legs before he has a chance to miss his old ones, just like I did for you. He won't have to pay a dime, either!"

This managed to get a smile out of the former alchemist. Looking at her lovingly, he nodded, "Yeah."

Suddenly, he made a sour face, seemingly offended. "Wait a minute. You always made me pay rush hour fees and a bunch of other extra stuff. Why does this guy get off scott free?"

She stared at him incredulously. Here she was, trying to do a good deed, and he was reprimanding her for it. Typical. Rolling her eyes, she answered, "Because this is a horrible thing that happened to him. Also, I don't make you pay your fees anymore."

"We're married! If anything, you shouldn't make me pay at all! Horrible things happened to me too, for your information!"

"Oh, stop whining! Automail costs money, you know! That fact doesn't change just because we're married!"

"You've gotta be…!"

He immediately cut himself off, however, when Aaron shifted a bit in his crib across the room. The couple watched the cradle in apprehensive silence, praying that the baby wouldn't start crying. Thankfully, the boy found a comfortable position and settled back down, sighing in content.

Ed's eyes softened a bit as he smiled at his sleeping son tenderly. "Sorry. Didn't know he was napping."

"Yeah," Winry said, smiling as well. She shot her husband a half-hearted glare. "Wake him up, and you're dead."

"Hey, I don't want that just as much as you do."

They just stared at the crib for a few minutes after that, watching their little baby sleep. Slowly, though, Edward's smile dropped, and he looked not only sad, but troubled. After a while, he told her, quietly, "One of the survivors was a little boy. He and his mom were pretty banged up. A lot of scrapes and broken bones, but Al and Mei are sure they'll be okay after lots of healing and rest…"

As he seemed to think about it more, his eyes turned even more sad. "When I saw Mei carrying that little guy over to us, he looked so lifeless, even though he was just at the beginning of his life. All I…" He grit his teeth, almost looking pained by his thoughts. "All I could see was Aaron. He was laying there, all battered and bruised in front of me…and I was helpless. I couldn't do anything."

"Ed…" It was always hurt Winry so much to see him like this. Edward rarely ever showed when he was sad or in pain, mostly just to protect and not worry those around him, so whenever he did, it was always a very serious matter. She scooted over and wrapped her arms around him, laying her head on his shoulder.

"What if something like this happened to you and Aaron? What if it happened to Al and Mei? I couldn't help but ask myself that and…" He clenched his fists. "I wouldn't be able to a damn thing, Winry. Not a God-damned thing. They didn't even need me there. Al cleared all the rubble in seconds, and he and Mei were there healing the survivors as best they could. I was just standing there half the time, watching them, and I felt so…useless! If something happened to any of you, and Al wasn't there to help, I couldn't do a damn thing! I wouldn't be able to protect my own wife and son! You would die because I couldn't help you!"

"Ed, stop it!" she exclaimed, turning his face so he was looking at her. She wasn't sure why he was suddenly having all these thoughts, but she could still understand the mindset he was in. It was very similar to hers. Still, that didn't mean that any of it was true. "Nothing is going to happen to any of us, and don't you dare say you're useless! You saved the country and everyone's lives along with it!"

"I had alchemy back then! Now…" Her husband's eyes gained a bit of fire as he argued back, but it diluted just as quickly. He looked down, either from shame or sadness from what he'd just admitted. "Now, I'm just a normal man. I can only do so much."

Winry was sure her heart cracked a little bit. "That's what this is about?"

She knew how much Edward missed being able to use alchemy, but he usually tried to hide it for Alphonse's sake. He didn't want his brother to feel guilty, with him being the reason he gave up his alchemy in the first place. Every now and then, she would catch the older Elric clapping his hands together and attempting alchemy on a broken roof tile or smashed plate, even though he knew it was all for naught. His feelings were understandable, seeing as he'd been a prodigy for most of his life until he gave it up, but…she never knew that his pain went that deep. He didn't care about not having it for the sake of it – he wanted it so he could protect those he loved.

Finally understanding, she lifted his chin up once more, holding his face in her hands and kissing him. After a few seconds, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back, and they stayed like that for a minute or two, just taking in each other's comfort.

After pulling away, Winry gave her husband a soft smile, running her fingers through his ponytail. "Just because you don't have alchemy, doesn't mean you're useless, Ed. All those men who went up there with you – our friends and neighbors – would you go up to them and tell them to their faces that all their kindness and efforts were useless because they can't use alchemy?"

Ed looked down, his cheeks red as if he were an embarrassed child. Quietly, he answered, "No."

"Exactly, and what about me? What if something happened to you and Aaron, and _I_ was the one left alone? I know I would do whatever I would need to do until I made sure my boys were okay, even if it took until my final breath. Are you telling me that all that would be useless to?"

He looked up, defending, "Of course not."

"So, there you go. As long as you're doing all you can do and moving forward, you're never useless. Having alchemy doesn't change that fact."

He stared at her for a minute, letting her words truly sink in as he contemplated them. Finally, a small, tender smile appeared on his face, his eyes softened, and he chuckled a little. "I guess you have a point. You're right, as usual."

"I'm surprised you still doubt me at this point," she giggled, smiling as she kissed him again.

When she pulled away, he sighed and gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. It's just…I _was_ able to help a lot of people with alchemy, and now that I don't have it…It's just been kind of troubling for me." He glanced over at Aaron as he said this, but turned back to her. "I've always felt guilty about it. I mean, I would never change the decision I made for the world. Al's here with us in his own healthy body, and he has a happy life that I was so afraid he'd never get the chance to have. Thinking about that, I feel stupid for complaining. After all, that's why I traveled around for so long. I might not be the one performing it, but I know that mine and Al's discoveries about alchemy will end up helping a lot of people. I hope that's the case, at least."

"It will be," she assured him, smiling determinately. It faded a bit, though, when she thought about all the times her husband had looked at their son worriedly. "Ed…are you still scared you won't be a good father for Aaron? Is that part of the reason you're so worried?"

He glanced at said boy again and hesitantly nodded. Still, he chuckled and flashed her a reassuring grin. "I don't think that feeling's every gonna go away. For now, I just gotta try my damned hardest and be the best I can be for him."

She grinned back at nodded in agreement, pride filling her heart. It was then that they heard a soft shuffling sound, causing them to turn their attention to the crib. Aaron stood up slowly, gripping onto the bars tightly for support. He stared at his parents for a few seconds, still in the process of waking up. When he was finally able to see, his mouth spread in a huge smile. "Daddy!"

The baby raised his arms in happiness, causing him to plop down on his bottom. Edward laughed at this and rushed to the crib, picking up his son and throwing him up a bit. "Hey, buddy! I'm home! You did such a good job taking care of Mommy!"

Winry smiled lovingly. Her boys. Her whole body felt warm from the sight, despite the horrible chill outside. She also felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The words she'd said to Ed echoed in her ears, and she suddenly realized that she should start practicing what she preached. She was a mother who cared for her family, an engineer who helped make limbs for those who no longer had any. She might not have been able to rebuild houses or heal wounds with a clap of the hands and a flash of light, but she was far from useless.

Seeing her husband and son, another thought occurred to her. _Maybe I should tell him I think I'm pregnant again…_

Nah. Maybe some other time.

* * *

 **Haha. There's the end of that little story. I realized that the past four chapters have been from either Winry or Al's point of view. I guess I just really like writing from their perspectives, but don't worry. I'm planning for next chapter to be from a different P.O.V. and to be a lot more fluffy in content then the past two. I can't be a depressing author all the time.**

 **If you like this chapter, please follow and/or favorite this story and/or me if you haven't already. If you have, then many thanks! I appreciate all the support that so many of you have given me! Also, leave me a review if you can and tell me specifics about what you liked or didn't like. I really like specifics so I can improve future chapters or just keep them the same.**

 **Once again, I hope you enjoyed! Have a wonderful day!**


	10. How We Got Here

**Hey guys! I'm back with another chapter!**

 **Ed and Al take the kids out on a walk to go visit their parents' graves, and while they're there, they can't help but reminisce on the path that has led them to this point in their lives.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Bye, bye, Mommy!" Little Trisha waved at her mother on the porch from Edward's arms.

Winry giggled, smiling sweetly at the almost two-year-old. Waving back, she said, "Bye, bye. Say hi to grandma and grandpa for me, 'kay?"

Mei, who was standing next to her sister-in-law, smiled as well. "Dinner should be ready in a half hour or so, so don't take too long."

"Like the two of us are ever late for food," Alphonse joked, chuckling also.

Edward nodded in agreement, smirking at his brother. "Yeah. Al could eat a whole feast by himself at any time of the day if he wanted to."

His younger brother gave him a sour look, but quickly retorted. "You eat just as much as me, so I don't want to hear it. I'm making up for lost time. What's your excuse?"

"Ah, shut up."

"No, no, Daddy!" Trisha scowled at her father, promptly wagging her finger. "Bad!"

Ed stared back at the toddler in surprise for a second, but quickly smiled, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. He and Winry always stressed to their children to be as kind as possible to everyone they met, which included not saying mean things like "shut up," "stupid," etc. However, old habits die hard, and Ed was having trouble practicing what he preached, even if he was only joking. "You're right, sweetie. I'm sorry."

Al laughed at his brother's expense. "You tell him, Trisha."

"Uncle Al, can you put me on your shoulders?" Aaron tugged on his uncle's shirt, looking up at him expectantly.

The alchemist smiled at the boy apologetically. "Aaron, you're getting a little big for that, don't you think? You're almost too heavy for me to even pick you up anymore."

"Pleeeaase!" Edward watched as his son gave his brother "the look." He wouldn't necessarily describe it as the signature puppy-dog eyes, and it didn't look like Aaron was about to cry or anything, but there was something about it that made the boy's father and uncle buckle under the weight. Edward could never understand how Winry and Mei were so invulnerable.

After a short stare-down, Al's expression switched to one of defeat, though he was still smiling. Sighing, he said, "Okay. Just on the way to the cemetery, though."

The four-year-old grinned widely at his victory, holding up his arms. Al braced himself for a second before quickly scooping up his nephew and setting him on his shoulders, clearly having some difficulties. Once Aaron was in place, his uncle grunted somewhat, chuckling. "I won't be able to do this for much longer, otherwise I'm gonna throw my back out."

"Oh, come on, you're not _that_ old," Ed commented. Turning to his wife, he said, "We'll be back soon."

"Let's go!" Aaron exclaimed, throwing up his hands. "Run, Uncle Al! Run!

"Okay…Here we go!" Al smiled at the boy before bounding down the road, now completely ignoring the weight on his shoulders and the possible repercussions on his spine that he'd been complaining about earlier. Aaron's amused giggles grew softer as they got farther away.

"Hey, you two! Wait up! I can't run with a baby in my arms!"

As Ed followed them at a brisk speed walk, he heard Mei laugh behind him. "Have fun!"

* * *

Ed wasn't sure how he managed it, but Al ran the entire way to the cemetery gates, sixty-pound Aaron bouncing and laughing widely the whole time. It was about another minute or so before Edward caught up with them, and by that time, Al was leaning against the fence, panting, though there was a playful smile on his face. "Now _there's_ a workout." He looked at his nephew, smirking. "What do you say, Aaron? You wanna do that with me every morning?"

The boy nodded his head vigorously. "Yeah!"

"You'd have to get up while it's still dark out," Edward informed him, also smirking.

His son considered this for a minute, his smile waning. After some contemplation, he shook his head. "I don't wanna get up that early."

The two brothers laughed heartily, escorting Aaron into the graveyard with Trisha still in her father's arms, looking around passively. Trisha Elric and Van Hohenheim's graves were just inside the entrance, and, having visited there quite a few times, Aaron knew exactly where to go. Standing in front of the two markers, the boy smiled mildly. "Hi, Grandma. Hi, Grandpa."

Edward came up behind his son, smiling and ruffling up his hair. Glancing at his daughter, he asked her, "Can you say hi?"

Baby Trisha processed his question for a second, then looked down at the graves and, with a rather unenthusiastic wave, muttered, "Hi, Gamma, Gampa."

Al sat down cross-legged in front of the markers, staring at them with a hint of sadness and nostalgia in his eyes, not unlike all the other times he and his brother visited their parents' graves. Ed followed his example, setting Trisha down in front of him so she could lean on his legs, and Aaron, seemingly feeling left out, plopped down with a thud, spreading his legs out in a "V."

After a few seconds of silence, Aaron frowned a bit and turned to Edward. "Why do we visit Grandma and Grandpa so much?"

"Because we like to see each other. They miss us after a while of us not coming."

That was his answer, but, for Ed, it only felt partially true. He usually found himself coming down to his parents', but mostly his mother's, graves whenever he began to think of his early childhood and miss all the times that they had together, even the times before Hohenheim had left them. Somehow, being near the markers bearing their names helped him to feel closer to them, if only briefly. Now, the part about seeing each other…it was a well-known fact to pretty much everyone that Edward wasn't one to believe in the big man upstairs. He originally didn't believe in an afterlife either, but over the past few years, his opinion on that had changed a bit. The thought of all the wonderful people he'd known in his life who had died – Nina Tucker, Brigadier General Hughes, Granny, his mother, and, hell, even his father – having their souls disappear into nothingness and their bodies disintegrate into ash and dirt was too painful to even comprehend. They deserved to be as happy as possible, both in life and in death. He knew that the idea of heaven was completely illogical by most scientific standards, but the more he told his children that their grandparents were watching them from "up there," the more he found himself believing it. Then again, maybe it was more of hope than belief.

"That's right. We can't let them get lonely," Alphonse added to his brother's statement, smiling gently. Turning to his nephew, he playfully asked, "Did you know that these are mine and Daddy's mommy and daddy?"

Aaron nodded tiredly, rolling his eyes exaggeratingly. "Yeah. You've _told_ me a _billion_ times."

"Well, maybe we like reminding you, ya little turd," Ed retorted, making a sour face at his son's newfound smart-assness. The boy had been trying to spread his wings a little bit by seeing what exactly he could get away with saying, and he'd recently discovered the concept of sarcasm and the like. His father wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

Still, the older Elric couldn't find himself to stay annoyed or irritated at it for long. Smirking, he poked the four-year-old in the side, causing the boy to jump up and yelp a bit at the sudden nerve pinch. He began to laugh, however, and, smacking his father lightly on the shoulder, exclaimed, "That hurts, Daddy!"

"Hey, don't leave me out!" Al chuckled as he grabbed Aaron from behind, wrapping him in a one-armed bear hug as he tickled him with his free hand. Aaron struggled to free himself, laughing as he kicked and squirmed.

As Ed chuckled at the sight, he felt a little tug on his other arm. Looking down, he saw Trisha pointing to something on their left and leaning toward it. Smiling innocently, she cried, "Peetty bugs!"

Following his daughter's eyeline, the former alchemist spotted countless tiny lights flying all around the open area beside them, illuminating the oncoming dusk.

"Lightning bugs!" Aaron, seeing the lights as well, broke free from Alphonse's grasp and stood up. Glancing at his dad hopefully, he asked, "Can we go catch them?"

The excitement in his little boy's eyes made Ed's heart feel warm, something that'd been happening pretty much daily since he'd been born. This peaceful like was definitely making him soft. Nodding and smiling gently, he told him, "Stay close, and mind your sister."

"Okay!" Aaron knelt down and took his baby sister's hand, helping her stand up. "Come on, Trisha! Let's go catch lightning bugs!"

"Ligh-ning bugs!" The toddler cried gayly, trotting alongside her brother as they headed toward the tiny lights.

Edward and Alphonse watched the two children in silence for a bit, observing as Aaron jumped around wildly, trying to catch the higher fireflies when there were multiple ones down near the ground. Trisha focused on those, though when she would waddle upon one, she would pause a while before clapping her hands in flash. Most of the bugs got away, but Ed couldn't help but feel sorry for the ones his daughter ended up accidentally squishing.

Al's voice broke the quiet around them. "How on earth did we get here?"

The slight wonder and dumbfoundness in his brother's voice made Ed laugh. Reading his mind, as always. Still watching his children, he answered, "That's the million sen question, little brother – one that I ask myself every damn day." There was a small pause before he chuckled again. "Honestly, we should've died long ago."

"But we didn't."

Ed finally turned around to see that Al had that signature look and smile he always had whenever he was completely happy. The younger Elric had taken to having that as his default expression, as he'd been unable to use it for so long. Ed smiled as well. They didn't die. Al had his body back. They had married the women they loved. They finally had the peaceful life they'd longed for for so long. How they had accomplished all this was beyond him, but he certainly wasn't about to complain about it.

Glancing back at his kids, the former Fullmetal Alchemist said, "Ten years ago, I never would've imagined any of this was possible for me. Now…I can't imagine life without them."

"You're a good father to them, Brother."

Ed chuckled. "There's something I _definitely_ never thought I would hear." Sighing, he added, "I don't deserve any of this."

"Well, I'd beg to differ, but that's my opinion." Al's smirk was prominent in his voice. "Still, I've got to admit you surprised me. I honestly thought you would be an absolute train wreck."

Giving his younger sibling a half-hearted glare, Edward muttered, "Gee, thanks for having so much faith in me."

Alphonse laughed at his brother's dismay, but his eyes grew somewhat sad with his small smile. "I sometimes had my doubts, but…back then I _could_ imagine having a life like this. Stuff like that, hoping for a happy future – that's what kept me determined."

"Admit it, though: you _definitely_ never imagined yourself being married to Mei." Ed couldn't help but bring this up, smirking.

"Definitely not." Chuckling, Al said, "I probably would've thought, _That psycho girl!? No way!_ I guess the same thing can be said about you and Winry though."

"Let's just call it a draw and say we're both completely insane."

"Works for me."

There was a short pause with only the cheerful shouts of Aaron and Trisha filling the silence as the two brothers stared at their parents' names on the two stones before them.

"Thanks, Brother."

"For what?"

"Giving up your alchemy to get my body back."

Edward looked at his younger brother in surprise. Chuckling and sighing a bit in exasperation, he said, "Come on, Al. I've told you that you don't have to thank me for that. You and I both know you would've done the same thing if our places were switched."

He couldn't help but think back to that day – the Promised Day. The image of Alphonse laying on Mei's alkahestry circle while the light of his soul died from his armor's eyes flashed in his mind. Out of all the times Edward had faced death and destruction, that moment had been one of the most terrifying of his life. He'd thought he'd lost his little brother, for good that time, and it had been his fault again. Seeing all the anguished faces of their friends and comrades, especially that of the sobbing Mei, and feeling the gaping hole in his heart at the realization that Alphonse was gone had immediately made his decision for him. To get his little brother back, Ed's alchemy was worthless for all he cared.

"Besides…" he continued, turning back to watch his son and daughter frolicking in the grass. Aaron had apparently caught one and attempted to hand it to Trisha, but it had flown out of her hands, and the two were now in pursuit of it once more. "You sacrificed your entire soul just so I could get my freaking arm back, so I don't want to hear you talk. Giving up my alchemy was probably the best decision I ever made. I got you your body back, just like I promised. Plus…I was able to finally realize what my life should really be focused on. I mean, who needs alchemy when I have all you guys, right?"

"Brother…" Al's eyes were still filled with a hint of guilt, but he was clearly surprised by Ed's words. Eventually, though, the younger Elric smiled, also watching his niece and nephew. "I guess you have a point. It doesn't make me any less grateful though. I mean, if it weren't you giving up your portal, I would never have gotten to do a lot of things. I never would've gotten to try Ms. Gracia's cooking or Winry's apple pie, for one."

"Geez, you and your food!"

"I told you: I'm making up for lost time!"

"You were in the armor for four years, and you got your body back over ten years ago."

"Hey, I'm trying to be sentimental!"

"You're _always_ sentimental!"

"There's nothing wrong with that!"

"What's sem-mi-mental mean?"

The brothers were torn from their rather trivial argument by Aaron, who now stood beside them holding Trisha's hand. No doubt they'd been drawn by the men's shouting. The kids' father and uncle stared at them in surprise for a second before rubbing the backs of their necks and chuckling in embarrassment.

" _Sentimental,"_ Alphonse corrected, smiling at his nephew. Simplifying it, he explained, "It's when something makes you happy and real warm inside, like a memory."

"Oh," was all the boy responded with, once again plopping down next to his dad. Trisha walked around and crawled into Edward's lap, where her father wrapped his arms around her protectively. Meanwhile, something inside him sparked some concern for his little brother. Al certainly wasn't a stranger to talks like this, and he constantly thanked his brother for his sacrifice, but for some reason, something didn't feel right.

"Al, is something bothering you?" he asked. "I mean, yeah, you're usually all about being sentimental and all that, but…I don't know. Something seems off about you today."

Al sighed tiredly, but still have him a reassuring smile. Oh, yeah. Something was up. "I've just had a lot on my mind lately, that's all."

"Whatcha been thinking about?" Aaron butted in, crawling around to sit on his uncle's lap.

"Stuff," Al joked, poking the four-year-old in the side once more and causing the boy to jump and laugh.

"Al…" Ed gave his brother a look of concern, cutting off his son's giggles. He wasn't about to let the subject drop.

Al's smile didn't waver, though his eyes showed that he was contemplating something. He stared at his brother for a moment before turning to the graves of his parents. A few more seconds of silence passed before he finally said, "I guess I might as well tell all three of you at once."

Edward raised an eyebrow, some of his worry now being replaced with confusion. There were six members of the Elric family all under one roof, so there really wasn't any room left over for secrets. He wasn't quite sure what Al had to tell him. In addition to that, what could it possibly be that Al would feel the urge to tell their deceased parents about it?

His younger brother now had a very excited smile on his face, almost like a small child ready to tell an important secret from the playground. His eyes seemed to swirl with all different kinds of emotions, so much so that Ed couldn't read them. However, in that moment, seeing that exact expression on his brother made him understand everything. He'd bore that look before himself. Two times – to be exact.

"Mei's pregnant." Upon saying those words, Al's whole demeanor seemed to relax, and he chuckled out of pure joy. "I'm going to be a dad, Ed."

The former alchemist stared at his sibling for a second. Even though he'd given himself a bit of a heads up, he certainly hadn't expected this information. Still, his initial shock quickly grew into a huge grin. "Al…that's awesome!"

Reaching over, he clapped his little brother on the back and pulled him into a hug, one that Al tightly returned, a huge grin on his face.

"You're squishing me!" Aaron yelped from between them, pushing on his father and uncle to separate them.

"Quit your whining! It's a group hug!" Ed retorted.

"Hug!" Trisha exclaimed, also in the mix. She somehow managed to wrap her tiny arms around her brother, squeezing him tightly.

Edward and Alphonse laughed at the children as the four of them finally drew back from the strange embrace. Aaron looked up at his uncle curiously. "What's pregnant mean?"

Al's smile impossibly grew even wider at the question, like he was so happy to finally be able to talk to someone about it. Resting his hands on his knees, he said excitedly, "It means that Aunt Mei has a baby in her tummy."

Ed nodded, also smiling as he addressed his son. "You remember when Mommy had Trisha in her belly? Like that."

This only seemed to confuse the four-year-old more. "Auntie doesn't have a big belly though."

"That's because the baby has to grow a bit first," Al explained, chuckling. His eyes sparkled. "She'll have a big tummy before long, I promise."

"God, Al, that really is awesome." Edward gave the alchemist a huge, genuine smile. It warmed his heart so much to see his little brother so happy. Al had been through so much pain and suffering, but he'd always confronted it with a kind and peaceful sense of mind. He was the reason Ed hadn't given up or grown depressed during those years they spent in the military. If anyone deserved this chance, it was Al. "I thought you two had been acting weird lately. When'd you find out?"

"A week or so ago. Doctor Matthews did some blood work and…voila, I guess." The young man shrugged, but his smile didn't shrink a centimeter.

"So, _that's_ what's been making her dizzy and stuff?" Mei had been feeling very fatigued and had been experiencing some dizzy spells for the past month, give or take. It had gotten to the point where Al had pretty much demanded she see the local doctor. When the couple had returned though, they'd simply told Ed and Winry that it was a slight case of dehydration.

Al nodded. Almost like he read his brother's mind, he said, "We didn't technically lie to you guys though. Mei is usually a healthy eater and stuff, but she's a tiny girl to begin with, so she just wasn't getting enough water and nutrients to properly sustain the two of them." His eyes lightened up when he mentioned the baby inside his wife's stomach. "Doctor Matthews told us that as long as she eats and drinks a bit more than usual, she should be fine."

"That's so awesome." Ed felt the need to repeat this statement once more.

Al chuckled, his words sounding wistful. "I couldn't think of a better way to describe it."

"You're a great uncle, Al," the older Elric grinned supportively and determinedly, "and you'll make an even greater dad. Guarantee it."

"Thanks, Brother." The young alchemist gave his signature, gentle smile with a hint of gratefulness. He turned to Aaron, who'd been watching and listening to the conversation intently, though how much he understood of it, Ed wasn't sure. Al patted his nephew's head, a soft look in his eyes. "I know you tell me not to thank you for what you did, Ed, but nothing will ever stop me from feeling grateful. I wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for you. I never would've gone to Xing or fell in love with Mei. I wouldn't have been able to see you and Winry get married or see the happy looks on your faces when Aaron was born. I never would've met my niece and nephew, and we wouldn't have so many of the memories we have now. We wouldn't be having this conversation. I would…I would've never gotten the chance to be a dad."

By this point, tears had filled the younger Elric's eyes, and he choked out a happy sob. He let his hand slip from Aaron's head and looked down, hiding his face. "Thank you so much, Ed. I…"

"Don't cry." Trisha furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Her tiny, innocent eyes were somehow filled with concern. She waddled up to her uncle, roughly patting his head in comfort, not entirely knowing how to control her arm strength just yet. "Don't cry, Un-le Al."

Al lifted his head in surprise, but his mouth spread into a gentle smile. Wiping his tears away and picking her up, he assured her, "It's okay. They're happy tears."

"That's weird," Aaron remarked.

"Aaron, hush," Ed half-heartedly chastised his son, though he was far from upset. Smiling, he told his brother, "Al, you and I both know my ability to transmute is nothing compared to all that stuff. So, don't mention it."

He then glanced at their parents' graves once more. "I bet you just made their day, little brother. They're probably balling their eyes out from wherever they are."

"Yep!" Aaron added, smiling wildly. "They're gonna cry so hard in heaven, it's gonna rain!"

This managed to get a hearty laugh out of Alphonse. "I hope they do."

"Well…" Ed grunted as he stood up. "I think we've visited long enough. Winry and Mei should have dinner ready right about now. You guys ready to eat?"

"Yeah!" The kids threw their hands up in the air to express their hunger and enthusiasm.

As the four of them – the father, uncle, and two children – walked out the gate and began to make their way back up the road, Al perked up, remembering something. Leaning down to Aaron and Trisha, he told them, "Make sure you don't tell anyone about Aunt Mei having a baby, okay? It's a big secret."

Aaron nodded fervently, making a far-from-proper salute. Trisha nodded as well, putting a finger to her lips.

Ed smirked. "What's this? Did you tell on your wife without her permission?"

"In that regard, I'm kind of telling on myself too, wouldn't you say? We were kind of planning to break the news to you and Winry at the same time, so…"

"Gotcha. Act surprised."

Al chuckled, "Surely that won't be too difficult for you." He turned forward, fixing his gaze on the yellow house appearing on the horizon with a determined look in his eyes. "We got ourselves in deep, Brother."

"Yeah, but the last thing I'm gonna do is complain. Come on, let's get moving. I can smell that beef cooking and my stomach's growling something fierce."

* * *

 **Ah! Cute! I really liked writing this.**

 **Just a heads up, my family is taking a huge month-long trip overseas, and I am unaware of the kind of internet access I will be getting while I am away from my ever faithful wifi, so an update within the next few weeks is not gonna happen. I will try to update once I get back and before I have to move into college. So, just warning you there.**

 **I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you did, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me if you haven't already. If you have, then many thanks! Also, please leave a review to tell me what you think! I love ze feedback! (I feel like a freaking YouTuber putting the same footnotes after every chapter. Like and Subscribe!)**

 **Anyway, I once again hoped you enjoyed this! Have a wonderful day!**


	11. Trip to the City

**I HAVE FINALLY UPDATED! I PROMISE I'M NOT DEAD!**

 **Sorry for the huge delay guys. As I stated at the end of the last chapter, I spent pretty much all of July out of the country, without a computer, and I've spent the last couple of weeks doing last minute packing and moving in for my first year of college, which I just had my first week of classes for. So, once again, I'm sorry for taking so long, so here's a cute little chapter with some emotional bits.**

 **Basically, Mei and Winry decide to have a little sister trip to Central when the older girl gets an automail customer there. While visiting, they get to see a bunch of old friends. (And we get to see them too!)**

 **Here we go!**

* * *

"Hey, big sisters!" Fourteen-year-old Elicia grinned wildly at them as she swung open the door.

"Elicia!" Winry gave the teenager a tight hug. Pulling away, she looked at the younger girl exasperatingly. "Honestly, could you _not_ grow anymore? You're as tall as a tree."

"Better than being a little midget like every one of my friends."

"Winry. Mei." Gracia appeared behind her daughter, giving the two women in the doorway her signature motherly smile. "Good to see you. Come on in."

"Thank you so much for letting us stay here," Mei said as the four of them exchanged hugs. Elicia shut the door behind them. "Really. You didn't have to."

"And let you stay in a hotel? Absolutely not. Fees are absolutely appalling now, even if you're only staying a couple days." The woman then smiled at the Xingese girl's stomach. "Besides, we want that baby to be as comfortable as possible."

"Oh, my gosh! I'd completely forgot!" Elicia's eyes sparkled at the reminder. "How far along are you?"

Mei smiled warmly at the question. She placed a hand on her small stomach, like she did whenever the baby was mentioned. Perhaps it was to remind herself that it wasn't all a dream. "About four months."

The younger girl made a sour face. "I was hoping you'd have a bigger belly."

Winry let out a laugh. "You sound exactly like Aaron. All he remembers is my bulging stomach from when I was pregnant with Trisha. She _is_ showing a little though."

"I bet you girls are exhausted after that train ride. Would you like some tea?" Gracia offered.

"Please," both Elric sisters answered in unison, their fatigue apparent in their voices.

As they moved along to the kitchen, Gracia asked Mei, "Was Alphonse nervous at all about you coming up here?"

The mother-to-be smiled sheepishly. "A little bit. He knows there's no reason for him to worry though."

"Well, that's how all daddies are. They always hate the idea of not being there when the people they love need them, even though there's no chance of them being in any trouble." The older woman turned to get some cups out of the cabinet, but not before Mei caught sight of a sad, nostalgic smile on her face. It seemed like Winry saw it too, because her eyes turned sad for second, but she quickly recovered.

"Exactly. Ed's definitely mellowed out a bit, but he's still pretty protective of the kids. Not to mention that he's a completely sucker. Trisha's had him wrapped around her finger from day one." The blonde added, chuckling at the thought of her husband.

Gracia managed a chuckle. "Now, that's how all daddies with _daughters_ are."

The girls all laughed at this. Mei once again rubbed her stomach, as if trying to feel her child. If Edward turned to absolute putty with a baby girl, then she could only imagine how Al would fare. The thought made her smile lovingly. Of course, they wouldn't know the gender of the baby until it was born…

Elicia smirked. "I think we should be more worried about your husbands all alone with those kids."

Winry shook her head, smiling. "Ed and Al would never let anything happen to Aaron or Trisha in a million years" Her smile scrunched up, though, and she made a distasteful face as she added, "No, I'm more worried about the state of the house when we get back."

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Mei assured her sister-in-law in an attempt to be optimistic. Then again, she couldn't recall any other time the Elric brothers had been left alone with the children for an extended period of time. So, therefore, the outcome really was unknown.

"Here we are." Gracia smiled as she set a tray with their tea and all sorts of little snacks on the table. "Now, you girls enjoy that. I'm going to start on dinner."

* * *

"Elicia, you have school in the morning, so no matter how long you stay up, I don't want to hear any complaining later, alright?"

"Yes, Mom." Elicia smiled good-naturedly at her mother, but by her tone Mei could tell that she'd heard this statement many times before. Gracia chose to ignore this, however, and bid the girls good-night once more before heading down the hallway to her bedroom.

Once they heard the sound of the door closing, the youngest girl smirked, rubbing her hands together, "Well, now that Mother has gone to bed, it's time to get into the _real_ adult conversations."

This managed to get a laugh out of Mei. She forgot how interesting the adult world could seem to a younger mind. "Just what do you think adults _really_ talk about?"

"I don't know…Saucy stuff."

"What the _hell_ is _saucy stuff_?" Winry began to laugh as well.

Elicia's face grew a bit red from embarrassment, but she still chuckled. "You know, it's like…the really juicy, interesting stuff to talk about."

"Well…raising kids, raising my husband, cooking, cleaning, mechanic work…" Winry counted the points on her fingers as she went, eventually flopping her hand down in defeat, grinning sheepishly. "I'd say my life isn't the juiciest."

Mei nodded in agreement. "For a few years, I'd like to say my life _was_ pretty interesting and juicy, but it's kind of wound down since then." She smiled, sipping her tea. "I like it this way, though."

Winry's eyes softened a bit, knowing exactly what her sister-in-law was talking about. No more fighting. No more worrying. No more dying. "Yeah."

It was silent for a few moments, their words having created some kind of mood in the air. Elicia seemed to think about something for a second. From what Mei understood, the teenager hadn't been informed about all the conspiracy and what not that had taken place in her early childhood, but she knew enough to know that the people she knew and loved had been through quite a bit in their time.

"Well…" the young girl began, "Everybody's lives are different, right? Even you two: you guys live in the same house and have the same family, but your lives are still completely different. In that way, I guess everyone's lives are interesting in their own right."

The two women stared at the girl for a second, completely surprised by her little words of wisdom. Winry's eyes grew nostalgic for a second, though her sister-in-law wasn't sure why. Still, both of them smiled brightly at their 'little sister.'

"That does makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?" Mei agreed.

Elicia nodded, somewhat relieved to have said something not too embarrassing. Sitting forward eagerly, she said, "So, let's talk juicy." Turning to Mei, she asked, "I'd say having your first baby fits the bill…. Have you felt it kick yet?"

The former princess shook her head. "No. Not yet, sadly."

"Don't worry," Winry assured her, sensing her slight disappointment. "You'll feel it soon enough. Both Aaron and Trisha started moving about halfway through the fourth month."

"What did Al say when you told him?" Elicia added another question, her eyes happy at the thought of the man she called her big brother.

"Well, we actually found out together at the doctor's, but…I'll never forget his face. I've only ever seen him _that_ happy a couple other times."

She smiled fondly as she recalled that day. They'd gone to the doctor's with tense apprehension, anxious to know what was the cause of Mei's recent dizzy spells, which had left said girl completely miserable and Al, Ed, and Winry horribly concerned. When the word "pregnant" escaped Doctor Matthews' mouth, she was sure both her and her husband's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates. After that, the two of them had just looked at her each other. Al's eyes were sparkling, and it warmed Mei's heart to see his look of disbelief grow into a glowing smile of joy.

Winry smiled, then chuckling somewhat, remembering something. "When I told Ed I was pregnant with Aaron, he kind of just stared at me blankly for the longest time. I thought his mind had just completely spaced out, so I just kept listing off…I don't know. Synonyms, I guess." She giggled once more before recreating the tone she'd probaby used on her husband at the time – that being very exasperated. "Pregnant. With child. Having a baby. Bun in the oven."

Mei and Elicia both laughed loudly as they tried to picture the scene. Knowing Edward, it was probably ten times funnier than they could imagine.

Winry sighed tiredly, but the smile remained on her face. "He eventually got it, and…yeah, his face was priceless."

Elicia grinned proudly. "Mom told me that when my dad found out she was pregnant with me, he basically jumped up and down, ran around like he was little kid, hugged her really tight, repeated the cycle about ten times, then passed out."

"I have absolutely no trouble believing that," Winry informed her.

"Seriously? So, you don't think she was exaggerating or anything?"

"I can assure you that your mom is being one hundred percent truthful. Your dad was wrapped around your finger probably the second you were conceived."

"So I've been told." The teenager looked pleasantly surprised at this information. She leaned back in her chair and smiled passively at the ceiling, saying in a far-off tone, "Daddy's little princess…"

Mei noticed her sister-in-law's eyes grow a bit sad at that last statement, and a small silence fell over the room. The Xingese girl had never met the legendary Maes Hughes, as he had died before she had first arrived in Amestris, but she had only heard amazing things from the Elric brothers and Winry. So much kindness, so much loyalty – she wished she could have known him, even for a little while.

Not knowing what exactly compelled her to do so, she couldn't help but ask, "Elicia…do you remember your father at all?"

The young girl didn't look surprised at the question. Still staring at the ceiling, she answered matter-of-factly, "Not really. I was only three when he died, so no one would really expect me to. I hear a lot about him from pretty much everybody, so it's almost exactly like remembering him, but…I think the only real memory I have is his tombstone."

The former princess nodded solemnly, completely knowing where she was coming from. The former emperor of Xing had rarely had any time for any of his many children, most of all those from such a lowly clan as the Changs. Because of this, Mei had never once in her life met her father, only hearing about him from messengers and occasionally from the other members of her clan. When he'd grown ill, she'd gone to seek the secrets of immortality not for his sake, but for the sake of her clan's survival. Many times, she'd forgotten the emperor was her father to begin with. When he finally passed away and all of his children were required to attend his funeral, she'd felt a hint of sadness rise in her throat, but nothing more. She'd felt so guilty about it, but, in reality, how could you feel grief and sadness over someone you never really knew? It was a sad fact, but it was easy for her to understand why Elicia could be so nonchalant about the subject.

Winry, on the other hand, almost looked like she was on the verge of tears. She looked at Elicia with one of the most devastated faces Mei had ever seen. Standing up, she said quietly, "Hey, it's getting pretty late. We should all be getting to sleep. Elicia, you have school, and I have a automail fitting to do in the morning. I have a feeling neither will go well if we're not rested up."

Elicia managed a yawn at the mention of sleep and, not noticing the other woman's discomfort, agreed, "Yeah. Probably should."

So, the three of them headed to bed – Elicia in her room and the two Elric women in their joint room. Mei was pretty sure she knew the cause of Winry looking so distraught and she wanted to talk to her sister-in-law about it, but Winry laid down before she got the chance. Maybe that was for the best.

* * *

"Okay, I'm off!" Elicia quickly stood up from the table, pushing her breakfast plate away. Moving swiftly, she went around the table and gave her mother and the other two women a kiss on the cheek. "Bye!"

The three of them bid her goodbye as well, and just as the girl closed the door behind her, Winry stood up, a pleasant smile on her face. She seemed to be in better spirits this morning, which was a massive relief to Mei. "I should probably get going too."

Gracia glanced at the clock. "You have almost an hour, sweetheart. I thought you said he lived rather close."

"He does," the automail engineer winked at her, a silly grin on her face as she picked up her tool box. Slinging it over her shoulder, she said, "You can never be too early though, and a Rockbell is never late to an appointment. Gotta keep up my reputation."

Mei and Gracia both chuckled exasperatingly. She was always so dedicated to her work it was sometimes scary. The older woman smiled, telling her, "Alright then, we'll meet you out for lunch."

The blonde nodded in agreement. "See you then."

Once she left as well, Mei and Gracia began to clear the table and wash the dishes, making little chatter as they did so. Mei had always enjoyed washing – whether it was clothes or dishes. She found it quite therapeutic actually. In a house with a crazy hyper niece and nephew, and a sometimes equally crazy husband and brother-in-law, it gave her a little time to herself to just clear her mind and be at ease. Still, she couldn't handle being that way for long. By this point in her life, crazy had become the norm, and she found she hated being away from it, even for a little while.

The job was thankfully very quick and easy with the two of them, so they were done in just about no time. After putting away the last dish, Gracia turned to the Xingese girl with a warm smile. "Well, now that that's done, would you mind coming with me to deliver a package?"

"A package?" Mei asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Of sorts," she chuckled, walking over to the counter and picking up a rounded glass dish. "I made a peach pie in addition to the crumble we had last night. I figured we could bring it to Roy and his men for a special treat. They should all be on duty today."

"What a wonderful idea!" Mei grinned and clapped her hands together in excitement. It had been a while since she'd seen General Mustang, Lt. Hawkeye, and the others, and she really wished to see them. "We'll surprise them!"

Gracia gave the former princess a motherly smile, obviously amused by her great enthusiasm. "Lord knows that their job isn't easy, and it can become quite monotonous at times. So, I bring them something every so often to lift their spirits. The trick is not to tell them you're coming."

She winked at this, making Mei giggle. "Let's get a move on, then!"

It only took them about twenty minutes to get to Central Command in a taxi. Gracia told Mei that she would sometimes walk the distance, which usually took about an hour and a half. Now, the weather was absolutely perfect for such a stroll, but the older woman refused to allow the mother-to-be to walk so far, despite all of Mei's assurances. Still, they managed to reach their destination with no road blocks.

Making their way through the building went just as smoothly. All the secretaries and guards seemed to know Gracia, greeting her with a smile and a jovial "Hello!" whenever they walked by. It also helped that Gracia clearly knew where she was going, making all of her turns deliberately and without hesitation, which should have been expected given how many times she did this. All the while they were walking, Mei allowed herself to look around. She had only been in the building a select few times, usually when she accompanied Al on a trip, but it had been so long, she'd forgotten quite a bit. It was just as expansive as she remembered though.

Finally, the two of them reached their desired door. Gracia knocked a couple of times, but didn't even wait for an invitation before opening it and poking her head in. "Hello!"

Mei couldn't see anything from the other side of the door, but she could hear the excited voice of Jean Havoc exclaim, "Yes! Food!"

"A pleasant surprise, as always." Roy Mustang definitely sounded calmer, but cheerful at the sight of the woman. "Come on in, Gracia."

"I hope you don't mind that I've brought a guest this time," Gracia said as she walked through the doorway. Mei followed suit, peering in slightly as she did so. The general sat behind a single large desk on the other end of the room, while Havoc and Seargants Breda and Feury sat at a group of desks off to the side. Lieutenant Hawkeye was on the opposite side of the room, searching for something on the bookshelf. All the soldiers were in their customary blue military uniforms. When all of them saw Mei, it warmed her heart to see their smiles grow just a bit bigger with surprise. It was actually almost enough to make her blush.

"Hey, hey, girly!" Breda grinned cheekily, leaning back in his chair. "Long time, no see!"

"I'll say!" the Xingese princess couldn't help but smile back. "It's so nice to see you all! I hope we're not interrupting anything."

"Nonsense. We work for the government," Havoc joked, popping a cigarette in his mouth. "Nothing important ever happens. What brings you all the way up here to bright, sunny Central?"

"Winry had an appointment with a customer, so we figured we could come together and spend a few days up here." Giggling, she joked, "Even _we_ have to take a break from those Elric boys sometimes."

"I think you'd probably go crazy if you didn't." This retort surprisingly came from Riza Hawkeye, who had found the book she'd been looking for. As she walked past Mei to her desk, she smiled good-naturedly. "I'm sure Aaron and Trisha are much tamer in comparison."

"Right on the mark," Mei laughed. "How's Joshua, by the way? He's almost done with his first year of primary school, isn't he?"

"Yep. Top of his class, too," Mustang interjected as he examined the dish Gracia had placed on his desk. He tried to keep a straight face, but Mei easily detected the pride he had for his five-year-old son in his voice.

Seeing his superior poking at the dish, Feury asked curiously, "What'd you bring us, Ms. Gracia?"

"Well, I had some leftover peaches from a cobbler I made, so I whipped up a pie for you boys."

"Oh! Give me a piece of that!" Havoc rubbed his hands together in delicious anticipation.

"Lieutenant, it's ten in the morning," Feury pointed out, suddenly exasperated by the yearnings of his comrade's stomach. "Don't you think it's a little early for pie?"

"There's fruit in it, isn't there? You can eat fruit for breakfast."

"That wasn't my point."

While their little debate was going on, out of the corner of her eye, Mei spotted the general sneakily trying to grab a slice out of the container. However, before he even had the chance, his wife appeared out of thin air, snatching up the dessert from his desk and leaving him with a somewhat pained and shocked look on his face, his hand outstretched to the food that was no longer there. Per the norm, she simply ignored this.

"Breakfast food or not," the female lieutenant interrupted the two men, holding the pie for all to see, "none of you are getting a piece until every single piece of paperwork is completed and turned in."

All four men, subordinates and superior alike, glanced at the mountainous piles of paper on their desks and proceeded to slouch heavily in their seats in despair. One could practically hear their desperate stomachs growling in agony.

Mei could only laugh heartily at the sight. They were exactly like Ed and Al – whenever they were denied food, it was almost like they went into a state of depression. "Think of it this way: it will taste all the more better after a hard day's work."

"Yeah…" the quiet, simultaneous reply yielded no improvement in their state.

"So, Mei," Riza set the pie on her desk, then turned to her with a smile, "how are the Elrics doing these days?"

Knowing she was referring to all of the Elrics and not just the brothers, Mei smiled as well. "Well, Ed and Al are still doing as much research as they can and trying to combine all the things they learned while they were traveling. From what I can gather, they've made a bit of progress, and I think they're planning a trip up here very soon to look at the First Branch again. Winry's always working on some kind of automail project in between looking after Aaron and Trisha. I just throw in a helping hand wherever I can, really."

"Speaking of Fullmetal," Breda spoke up, "tell him to bring those kiddos of his next time he comes up. The guy never shuts up about them when he's here, but I haven't seen Aaron since he was maybe a toddler, and I've only seen pictures of Trisha."

"Same here. I may be a tough, ruggedly handsome guy, but I'm a sucker for little ones," Havoc added.

"Me too," Feury agreed. "About seeing the two of them, that is."

Hawkeye nodded. "I think we'd all like to see them."

"I'll make sure to let him know," Mei smiled at all of them, feeling a bit of pride for her niece and nephew. A thought came to her, and she chuckled. "Though, we'll see how much Ed and Al feel up to bringing them after being alone with them for a couple days."

Roy let out a short laugh. "Let me guess: Mom and Auntie get all the work done, while Dad and Uncle are putty in their hands."

"They actually _do_ get a lot of work done," said auntie defended. "Still, it _is_ dumbfounding that the Elric brothers' one weakness is kids. Let's just call this little arrangement an experiment."

"Said like a true scientist," Havoc smirked as he blew out some smoke.

Gracia laughed. "And then their adding another one into the mix. Bless their souls."

"Another what?" Sergeant Feury raised his eyebrow, obviously unaware of what Gracia was referring to.

The rest of Mustang's group, including the general himself, looked both surprised and confused as well. Mei felt her face redden in slight embarrassment, though she wasn't quite sure what there was to be embarrassed for. She was sure she told Al to call, or…maybe Ed volunteered to. Or maybe…oh, what did it matter? It was obvious the two of them had forgotten to.

After a short few seconds of silence, it was Breda who seemed to put the pieces together first. Eyebrows raised in surprise, he began, "Another…"

"Baby," Mei finished, grinning sheepishly. She tugged on the single braid in her hair, while also putting a slight hand to her stomach. "Surprise…?"

To the princess's surprise, there was maybe only a split second of shock on the soldiers' faces before the grins rose once again.

"No kidding!?"

"That's awesome!"

"Hey, congrats, Missy!"

"Mei, that's wonderful," Riza gave her a warm smile. Mei remembered when she'd first met the lieutenant all those years ago. She'd been so intimidating, so hard, and her eyes could be so cold at times. Now, yes, she was still very much like that, but as Mei got to know her a bit over the years, the sniper didn't seem as vicious. Maybe it was also because there was a slight softness to her now – one that all mothers obtain no matter how hard they try not to.

The mother-to-be felt a slight blush rise to her cheeks. "We found out about two months ago. I'm four months now."

"So, Al's gonna be a new papa, huh?" Lieutenant Havoc smiled at the ceiling for a minute as his words seemed to sink into the room. Finally, the man stood up and, dramatically gesturing to his comrades, said with a smirk, "Gentlemen. Ms. Lieutenant. I think it is safe to say that we are now officially…" He popped out his cigarette, promptly smashing it in his ashtray, "old as shit."

This got a huge laugh out of pretty much everyone in the room. When the excitement died down, Breda couldn't help but add, "Ed with two kids. Al with one on the way…seems like just yesterday those two were little preteens walking in here for the first time like they were hot stuff. Well…Fullmetal did, anyway."

Feury smiled with a nostalgic look in his eyes, one Mei had seen so many times and knew all too well. "Those days _do_ seem like so long ago, don't they?"

"That's because they were," General Mustang told them with a straight face as he stared at the papers on his desk. "I think we all just want them to be so much closer."

His words hung in the air for a moment before he turned to Mei and, with a genuine smile, said, "Congratulations, Mei. Make sure to tell Alphonse we send our regards."

The Xingese girl stared at the Flame Alchemist for a second, still surprised by his previous words. She was sure Al had said something like that to her before. Still, she smiled gratefully. "Of course. I'll be sure too."

"Well, we won't stay too long and keep you from your work," Gracia said, glancing at the clock. Turning to Mei, she added, "We should probably get going. With traffic, it will take a cab a while to get to the restaurant. We don' t want to keep Winry waiting when she gets out."

"Alright." Mei then turned to the small group of soldiers. The soldiers who always treated her with kindness, as if she were their little sister, as if they'd known her as long as they'd known Ed, Al, and Winry. Bowing slightly, she said, "Goodbye, everyone. I'll make sure there won't be so much time in between our next visit."

The group simply smiled and nodded in response. However, as her and Gracia made their way out the door, Mei heard Breda call after them, "And don't you hide that kid from us, you hear!? I want to see the little guy at least _once_ before he's five!"

* * *

"Geez, those two can't do the simplest job…" Winry made a sour face as she took a bite of her salad. They had just told her about the accidental surprise at the command center.

Gracia chuckled. "Well, there's nothing you can do about it now. I'm sure they had some other stuff on their minds and forgot."

"They forget the weirdest things," Mei added on, sighing in exasperation. Her husband was so smart and dependable most of the time, which made it all the more shocking when he _did_ make such a tiny slip up. Oh well, she couldn't expect him to be perfect all the time.

"Maes did that all the time when Elicia was little. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel about a month or so before she was born. So, not only did he have new responsibilities to look after, but he also had a new child at home. I swear, every morning he would forget something – his keys, ID, even his glasses a few times." Said man's widow stared into her tea with a faraway look in her eyes and a nostalgia smile. "That poor man was so stressed back then."

Winry's annoyed look dropped, being replaced with a heavy frown. She tossed her lettuce around a few times before quietly saying, "Elicia told us she doesn't remember anything about Mr. Hughes. Is that true?"

"I think so," the girl's mother replied, a sad smile on her face. "Every now and then, I'll mention something that happened when she was little, and she'll say she remembers it, but I think she might just say it for my sake."

"God, that's so cruel…" The blonde woman was now glaring at her food, though her sister-in-law could clearly see tears forming in her eyes. "To have such a wonderful father who loved her so much, and to not even remember…How cruel…"

"It is sad…" Gracia agreed, nodding somewhat. Her smile disappeared for a second, but it quickly returned. "Still, I try not to think of it that way. Since she doesn't remember, it means that I get to tell her so many stories about her father, even some of the stuff she was there for. It always warms my heart to see her smile and laugh at the mention of him. It's how I know she knows how much he loved her. Also…" Her smile waned. "Her having no memory means she doesn't feel the pain."

Mei and Winry both looked at the woman, surprised by her both encouraging and suddenly rather depressing words. Gracia looked up from her drink and met their eyes, a serious, protective-mother look on her face. "Every now and then, I know she gets sad or sometimes even mad about not having her father around, and that just about breaks my heart…but I'd rather that than her knowing the pain all of us felt when we lost him, the pain we _still_ feel. I think that would be more than I could bear."

Winry's eyes somehow saddened even more as she looked back down. "I think about my parents just about every day. Sometimes they're happy memories, and I just smile, and sometimes they're sad ones…but I can't help but cry at all of them. I miss them so much…"

She gripped her tea cup. "Now that you mention it, I wish I _could_ be more like Elicia in that regard, but at the same time…" She choked back a small sob. "I don't want to forget."

"Winry…" Mei looked at her sister-in-law with deep concern.

"That's enough, dear," Gracia gave the older Elric woman a gentle, motherly smile. "I didn't mean to get you all upset." She stood up and brushed off her dress, quickly changing the subject. "Now, come on. You two came up here to have a good time and take a break, so that's what we're going to do. How about I take you to a few shops I know of?"

Winry still looked slightly depressed, but nodded. Feeling compelled, Mei reached out and grabbed her hand from across the table, something that had become the sisters' way of comforting each other through the years. The two of them looked at each other for a second, with the former princess giving the mechanic a comforting, reassuring smile. Eventually, the older one smiled for real and nodded once more. "Yeah. That sounds fun. Let's do it."

* * *

"What a fun trip," Mei stated in a tired voice, though there was still a genuine smile on her face.

Winry nodded, her eyes showing exhaustion as well. They'd just gotten off their train, which had been delayed for a little while, so it was quite late in the evening. Looking out at the country road that lead to their house, the older woman said, "It was, but I gotta say I'm glad to be home."

They began their trek up the trail in silence, and it remained that way for a few minutes, with only the sound of summer cicadas and the light breeze on the crops interrupting the stillness. After a while though, Winry spoke in a somewhat hesitant, quiet voice, "Hey, I'm sorry for…being a bit emotional while we were there. I guess I kind of ruined the whole mood."

Mei shook her head, flashing her sister-in-law a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it. Nothing was ruined at all."

"Yeah, but…I don't even know what came over me those times. It's like it came out of nowhere."

"This whole point of this trip was for us to get away and relieve some stress. You always have to stay strong for the kids and for the rest of us too. Not to mention you always have to stay on top of your job and housework and just about everything else. I think anyone would need a good venting cry after that."

"I guess you're right. I'm still sorry for making such a fuss." Winry paused for a second, but a smile came to her face as she thought of something else. "Besides that, though, I think this little vacation of ours has been pretty successful. I've found myself another city customer, and we were able to get you some nice maternity clothes."

"And we were able to see everyone after such a long time."

"Yeah. That's always the best part."

They finally reached the crest of the hill, being able to see the Elric family residence in the distance. It looked exactly the same as when they'd left it a couple days ago – front porch, yellow siding, and the front light illuminating through the darkness.

Mei couldn't help but lightly smirk. "Well, it's not burned down."

"Let's not celebrate just yet," Winry reminded her, also smirking. "We still haven't seen the inside."

To give Edward and Alphonse credit, the inside of the house wasn't nearly as bad as the girls had been expecting. There were a few toys and articles of clothing here and there, as well as some books strewn about. Besides that, though, it was mostly just normal clutter. What really struck Mei as odd was the fact that the house was eerily quiet when they opened the door. Aaron and Trisha should've been asleep at this hour sure, but the boys always stayed up rather late. Where were they?

The two sisters looked at each questioningly, quietly shutting the door behind them before setting their bags down and searching for their husbands. Thankfully, they didn't have to go far. Mei headed down the entryway into the living room, and the sight she came upon just about made her heart melt.

The room was an absolute mess, of course, but that wasn't what she was focused on. The couch and the two arm chairs had been pushed together in the center of the room with pillows stacked high on top of them. In addition, a blanket lay on top of all the stacks, connecting them and forming a little canopy over the middle area. Lying there, under their makeshift little fort, were the four of them, all sound asleep. Aaron lay close to Edward, both of them laying on their sides with their hands under their shirts as if they were exact clones of each other. Alphonse was asleep on his back, with tiny Trisha laying on top of him, her head resting on his chest and his arms gently wrapped around her to keep her from falling off.

Mei just stared at them for a while, a sweet, loving smile on her face. She only broke out of her trance when Winry came up beside her and surveyed the scene herself. The mother also smiled tenderly and chuckled somewhat. Glancing at Mei, she said, "Guess we had nothing to worry about."

Mei looked at her as well, nodding in complete agreement, and by the look in her sister's eyes, she could tell they were thinking the same thing. Slowly and quietly, the two of them managed to wiggle their way into the fort and lay beside their husbands, who were completely unconscious and unaware of their presence.

Winry seemed to fall asleep almost immediately, her breathing becoming slow and light. Mei, on the other hand, just looked for a while. She looked at her brother and sister-in-law, at her nephew, at her niece, and of course, at her husband. Alphonse always looked so young and peaceful when he slept. Now, yes, he was far from being considered old yet, and their lives were definitely so much more peaceful now than they'd ever been, but there was just something different about it when he was asleep. She couldn't pinpoint what, but she'd always loved it. Not only that, but the sight of Trisha on his chest made her feel all giddy. Her mind wandered a couple months, maybe even a couple years, into the future, and she imagined a different child sleeping with him. Not his niece or nephew, but his own child. Their child.

She smiled at the thought, and it was that peaceful thought that helped lull her to sleep after such a long trip.

* * *

 **There you go! I hope you enjoyed that! Finally got some sister time between the girls!**

 **If some of you found it familiar, I did take the whole situation of Winry telling Ed she's pregnant and Havoc's "We work for the government" line from fan comics I've seen. If you can find them, check them out. They're really cute and they look good too.**

 **Just to point out, since I'm in college now, my updates might not be as regular as they once were. Like, the once a month like I was doing. I PROMISE though that I will write to my hearts content when I have the time and update as soon as possible because I love you guys and I love that you love my story and THANK YOU!**

 **Once again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you haven't already please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me. Also, please leave a review and tell me what you think, because I love specific constructive criticism. Preferably positive, but I can't control negative stuff. Haha...Please try to refrain from being too mean, though. I'm sensitive.**

 **Thank you! Hope you guys have a great day!**


	12. The Hardest Lesson (Part 1)

**Greetings fam! I have returned from the land of the dead - a.k.a. college. Haha.**

 **But seriously, I am SO SO SO SO sorry for making you guys wait so long for new content. I am currently majoring in Theatre at one of the top theatre schools in the country, and if you've ever been involved in the performing arts, you know it is very time consuming. Believe it or not, this is all I've been able to write in the past four months. Shameful, I know.**

 **I was originally going to post this story as just one chapter, but I figured I needed to give you guys _something_ after being dormant for so long. So, the continuation of this story will hopefully come soon. I'll definitely crack down on it once finals are done and winter break is upon us.**

* * *

 **One of the toughest lessons we ever learn is that nothing lasts forever - a rain storm, a crush, a precious life. When it's time for Aaron to learn this lesson, it's up to Ed to offer up the best fatherly comfort he can - something he was never able to have.**

* * *

"Oh, jeez. Aaron…" Winry's exasperated, but also amused voice was what finally broke Ed out of his early morning stupor. Groaning sleepily and rubbing his eyes, he rolled over to see his wife sitting at the edge of the bed, a small smile on her face.

"What is it?" he asked hoarsely.

She turned to him and, with a humorous grin, revealed a small piece of paper in her hand. Though he'd just woken up, he recognized his seven-year-old's somewhat sloppy handwriting.

"It was on the nightstand," Winry informed him, then proceeded to read it out loud, struggling at some parts due to the messy penmanship. "Dear Mom and Dad, I went to Lydia's house to play with her for a little…while. I just wanted to let you know so you…wouldn't freak out since I'm not in my bed. I ate a cookie for breakfast so don't worry about that too. Love, Aaron."

Ed let out a small laugh, smirking at his wife. "Geez, the little guy's so lovestruck he can't even ask if it's okay first."

"Oh, shut up," his wife made a sour face, her mommy-protectiveness kicking in. The two of them had spent that last couple months debating on what exactly their son's relationship was to the new girl in the village. Winry still wanted to hold onto her little boy, like most mothers do, and couldn't accept the fact that he was having his first crush. It was simply a friendship, and that was all. Ed had a sneaky feeling that she knew he was right, though. He'd been a little boy once, after all, and he knew that the love in a kid's heart could sometimes be more than that of an adult.

That was how they ended up married after all these years.

"He hasn't been able to go over there the past few days thanks to all this rain. He must have really wanted to see her," Winry reasoned, looking out the window. There was cloud cover and the air was humid, but there wasn't a water droplet in sight. Sighing, she continued, "Still, we need to talk to him about doing this. He can't just go running off without telling us."

"Lay off him, Winry. It's _Risembool._ The whole town is just one long road. There's only one way he can go."

"I know, but…stuff happens."

Edward's eyes furrowed a bit. Stuff happens. He knew that all too well. Still, he didn't let his thoughts wander too far with that statement. The village was so connected, and everyone knew everybody. If anything were to happen, they'd know right away. Besides, the only thing that could potentially happen was their son slipping and getting covered in mud.

Sitting up, he wrapped his arm around her waist and hugged her from behind. Chuckling a bit, he reassured her. "You worry too much, Gear Head."

"I could say the same for you, Alchemy Freak," she replied, smiling now at using his nickname. She turned her head to face him and placed a small kiss on his lips.

"Uncle Ed! Auntie Winry!" a high voice called out and small, yet pounding footsteps grew closer to their room. Three-year-old Nina soon stood in the doorway, smiling wildly and innocently at them. She jumped up and down, her black hair bouncing and golden eyes sparkling. "I made pancakes!"

"Did you?" Winry asked excitedly, chuckling. Her and Ed both suddenly became aware of the delicious smell wafting through the house. Al and Mei were working in the kitchen. No doubt about it.

"Welp, that's Aaron's loss," Ed joked, jumping out of bed, his stomach rumbling for the promise of food. "He can keep his cookie. We're having some _real_ breakfast."

"I cooked that pancake, Daddy," Trisha proudly informed Edward as he took his last bite.

Her father gave her a surprised look and, swallowing his food, flashed her a grin. "Well, my compliments to the chef then."

"I helped too!" Nina interjected, raising her fork in the air and flinging her bite of breakfast on the floor.

"Only a little," her cousin mumbled as she took a bite of egg.

Mei chuckled, picking up the piece of pancake off the ground. Sitting back up, she said, "The two of you are going to be professional cooks pretty soon. You'll replace Aunt Winry and me before long."

Winry laughed. "They're more than welcome to. I could use a break."

Somewhere in the middle of this conversation, the phone began to ring. Al quickly got up to answer it, also chuckling at his daughter flinging food in her excitement, and disappeared into the other room. Ed could only vaguely hear his brother's voice as he picked up. He expected to hear him call for Winry, seeing as they usually only got calls from her customers, but that wasn't the case. Maybe it was Teacher. She called every so often. There was also the possibility of it being Mustang. He'd ask them to come up to Central sometimes to help decode some newly recovered notes or act as extra security for a mundane event or whatever.

They'd just finished laughing over what Winry had said when the younger Elric brother re-entered. Ed was about halfway turned to him when he heard Mei's newly serious, concerned voice. "What's wrong?"

It was then that Ed looked at his brother, and what he saw filled his whole being with dread. Alphonse face had grown pale, his mouth in a deep frown and his eyes narrowed in what looked like sadness. He stared at the floor, clearly not knowing what to say.

Winry, sensing the atmosphere, quickly turned to the girls, smiling, though Ed could hear a nervous quiver in her voice. "Trisha, Nina, how about you pick up your rooms a little bit. If they're clean enough, we can go play outside later."

Somehow that statement made Ed feel worse. His wife would never let them play outside when it was that muddy unless it was something serious. The two girls' eyes also widened in surprise, but they quickly shouted, "Okay!" and sprinted towards their rooms.

Nina, however, did stop for a second, suddenly noticing her father's expression. Little eyes glowing with concern, she patted his leg to get his attention. "What's the matter, Daddy?"

Al was brought out of his stupor by this, looking down at her in slight surprise. He gave her a forced reassuring smile. "Nothing, sweetie. Go on like Aunt Winry told you too."

That was enough for his daughter, as she flashed him a smile and did as he asked. The four adults waited in silence until they were sure the two girls were out of earshot.

"Al, who was it?" Ed asked, eyebrows furrowed. His mind raced with possibilities. Teacher…no, it would be Sid. Did her coughing get too out of hand this time? Mustang…God, any one of his men could've been hurt…or worse. Then again, bad news could come from anywhere.

"Ms. Anais," Al answered, his voice grave. He opened his mouth to continue, but couldn't find the will to say anything. Taking a deep breath, his face contorted a bit in sadness and his eyes were filled with a sort of empathetic pain. After that, the words just spilled out.

"Lydia's dead."

Winry and Mei gasped loudly, wide eyes staring at the younger Elric in complete and utter shock. Mei clasped her hands over her mouth, tears quickly forming. Ed stood from his chair in about a millisecond, also wide eyed, though the loud thud he made didn't even make his family members jump. They said nothing for the longest time, just looking at each other with complete horror and grief.

Ed's thoughts jumbled in his head, not quite being able to pick one appropriate emotion. Lydia…that sweet girl his son had brought home one day, who played dress up with Trisha and Nina, who practiced arithmetic with Aaron on the living room floor, who had shared countless meals with them over the past few months…

Another little girl popped into his mind – one who he actually hadn't thought of for a while. Two long, braided pigtails, a little blue dress, a name the same as his niece's.

" _How?"_ he asked, almost glaring at his brother in frustration. How? Why? Why did it always have to be sweet little girls that did nothing wrong?

Al didn't flinch under his older sibling's gaze, also furrowing his eyes in slight frustration, but mostly sadness. "She apparently caught pneumonia a couple days ago after the rain started. The doctor treated her as best as he could, but with her lungs the way they are…there was nothing much they could do. She passed away sometime this morning."

They sat in silence for a moment as his words sank in. Winry let out a small sob, covering her mouth. "Clara and John…they'd been so excited when she'd been given the clean bill of health, and now…" Tears began to stream down her face as she looked down. "The poor thing…"

Ed walked over and put his arm around her in comfort, running his fingers through her hair. All the while, he thought fervently. Lydia's lungs had been bad, sure, but how could just a couple rainy days _kill_ her? She'd gotten so much better since her family had moved from Central.

He sighed inwardly. God, what was he going to tell…?

An electric shock shot up his spine.

"Damn it, Aaron's over there!" He mentally scolded and slapped himself as he bolted for his jacket. His wife, brother, and sister-in-law's faces morphed with this realization as well.

Throwing a hoodie on, Ed tried to make the calculations in his head. Risembool wasn't a big town, but it made up for it in the length of road between houses. Aaron liked to take his time when he walked between their house and the Bowens'. Depending on when exactly he left, maybe he could catch him before…

"Brother." He was taken out of his thoughts by Al catching his arm. Turning to the younger man, he saw his eyes still filled with sadness, but now also sympathy and understanding. He knew what Ed was thinking, but…they both knew … "You can't protect him from this."

The older brother wanted to argue back, to make some sort of retort, but he felt as if there was no air left in his lungs. His wife stood behind Alphonse, her jacket already on, staring at him sadly with red, tear-stained eyes. "Let's go, Ed."

He stared back at her for a second, but quickly looked down at the floor, angry and ashamed of himself. "Damn it…"

* * *

 **And suddenly we're back to depressing again.**

 **I know that wasn't too much, but like I said, I wanted to give y'all at least something.**

 **Next time, we'll see how Aaron deals with the death of his dear friend and how Ed deals with his first real fatherly crisis.**

 **Hope you liked this! If you haven't already, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me! Also, _please_ leave some reviews and feedback for me. All comments are greatly appreciated!**

 **Have a wonderful day!**


	13. The Hardest Lesson (Part 2)

**Got Part 2 done by the end of winter break! Mission accomplished!**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 _"_ _We're home!" Trisha's voice called out as Ed heard the front door open and shut. He turned his head just in time to see his daughter come bounding into the living room. Giggling, she threw her bag down and lept onto the couch with him, hugging him tightly, which he gladly returned._

 _"_ _Hey, ankle biter!" he smiled affectionately, patting her head. "School go okay?"_

 _"_ _Yep!" she confirmed, giving a large nod._

 _Hearing more small footsteps in the doorway, he turned back to greet Aaron. "Hey, buddy…Hm?"_

 _The kids' father was surprised to see a little girl he'd never seen before standing beside his son. She was about a couple inches taller than Aaron, with extremely curly deep brown hair and vibrant blue eyes. In addition to her small leather backpack, she wore a simple yellow plaid dress with black shoes._

 _"_ _Who's this?" Edward asked as the children grew closer._

 _Before Aaron even had a chance to open his mouth, the little girl walked up, extending her hand in greeting and flashing a cute, big-cheeked smile. "My name's Lydia Bowen! It's nice to meet you, Mr. Elric!"_

 _The former alchemist looked at the girl in surprise for a second, but quickly smiled back, gently shaking her hand. "The pleasure's all mine." He then looked at his son. "She a friend of yours?"_

 _Aaron had spent the past minute or so looking at the scene in about the same amount of confusion his father had initially had, almost like he wasn't exactly sure how they'd gotten into this situation. Realizing he was being addressed, he looked down at the floor in slight embarrassment, muttering, "She's a new girl in my class."_

 _"_ _Mommy, Daddy, and me used to live in Central," Lydia informed him jovially, "but we live here now so I won't breathe weird anymore. I've never seen a real country house before, cause we always lived in an apart-a-ment, so I asked Aaron if I could come and play and see his house and I knew he'd let me cause he's really nice."_

 _"_ _That so?" Ed smirked. He was sure Lydia's heart was in the right place, but from the looks of things it almost seemed like she'd invited herself and Aaron didn't have the guts to turn her down._

 _"_ _I didn't tell her she could…" Aaron added on under his breath, confirming his dad's hypothesis._

 _"_ _Well, either way, you're welcome here at the Elric house," Ed assured her. "Besides, you probably would've come here anyway. Aaron's mom loves to have new people over for dinner."_

* * *

 _"_ _Thank you so much for having us over," Lydia's father, John, thanked them as he finished up his plate. The six adults were sitting around the dinner table, having just finished eating, while the kids had left a while ago to go play in the yard._

 _"_ _It was our pleasure," Winry assured him, smiling kindly. "We don't normally get many new people this far out in the country, so we always try to make families like you feel as welcome as possible."_

 _"_ _I've got to say it's quite a relief," Clara, Lydia's mother, chuckled. "We were so scared that we'd end up being outcasts in such a tight-knit community like this, but I've honestly never had such amiable neighbors in my life."_

 _"_ _That's Risembool for ya," Al smiled proudly._

 _"_ _I completely understand where you're coming from," Mei told them, sympathy in her eyes. "When I first moved over here from Xing, I was so afraid that I wouldn't fit in at all, but everyone welcomed me with open arms. Then again," she smiled sweetly, yet slyly at her husband, "I guess marrying Al earned me some points."_

 _Al blushed somewhat and, not knowing how to respond, said, "I wouldn't say that…"_

 _John smiled at their words of encouragement. "Well, even if we knew we weren't going to be accepted here, we still would've come. There's no way we could've stayed in the city."_

 _Ed furrowed his eyebrows, suddenly remembering something from his earlier conversation with their daughter. "Lydia said you came out here so she wouldn't breathe weird."_

 _Clara's eyes saddened, though a small smile still remained on her face. "About a year ago, we got a letter from some of Lydia's teachers saying that she wasn't doing as well in physical activities as she used to, at least compared to the other kids. It was also around that time that she started taking more naps that normal, and she could never keep up with any of her cousins whenever they'd come to play." Her smile disappeared. "About two months after that…she started coughing. They were little at first, but then she started having these huge fits where she couldn't stop coughing for minutes on end. Then she started coughing up blood…"_

 _The woman's voice cracked at this final sentence. Ed glanced over at Al for a second, only to find his little brother glancing at him too, and he knew they were both thinking of one Izumi Curtis._

 _John put his hand on his wife shoulder, solemn, and continued, "We took her to multiple doctors, and they all examined her thoroughly, concluding it had something to do with her lungs. We had one medication, which stopped the coughing, but then she started wheezing, then there was another one that stopped the coughing and gave her more energy, but she'd have an attack if she got too excited or pushed herself too hard."_

 _"_ _How awful…" Winry commented, her eyes sad as well. "Do the doctors at least know what it is?"_

 _John shook his head. "They took some x-rays, but they say the structures of her lungs are perfectly normal, and all the medicines they gave her usually help people with similar symptoms. The best they can figure is that it's some new kind of respiratory illness, one that they don't know can be treated yet. They said that the best thing to do right now was to get her some fresh air away from all the fumes of the city. That's why we came here."_

 _"_ _I just hope it makes her feel better…" Clara murmured, tears now forming in her eyes. "So many times I've had to clean up blood off her face and…have her come up to me and say, 'My chest hurts, Mommy. It hurts.' And I couldn't do anything about it…" She let out a small sob, cupping her face in her hands, "She's my baby girl and I can't even take the hurt away…"_

 _The four Elrics looked down at the table, all of them suddenly aware of the children's giggles and cheers coming from outside. Their children….the meer thought of any of them becoming sick and being helpless to stop it made Edward nauseous. He couldn't even imagine lively little Trisha being weak with coughing while he was unable to do anything for her. He could only imagine how John felt with his little girl being in that very situation._

 _Ed glanced at the end of the table. "Al, Mei…"_

 _But his brother and sister-in-law already knew what he was thinking and shamefully shook their heads. Mei sadly explained, "Alkahestry is used in the more physical area of medical science, like broken bones or torn tissue. Illnesses are a completely different story, especially if we don't know what they are. If her lungs are structurally sound like they say, then there's nothing we can do, and even if there's some dead tissue involved, we can't revive any of it."_

 _The Bowens, who'd looked slightly hopeful, deflated a bit at this news. Still, John nodded in thanks. "It's alright. It was nice of you to even consider it. I guess…the only thing we can do now is wait and pray. I just hope that this is really what Lydia needs, so she can be a little kid again."_

 _The other adults nodded, while Ed looked at them seriously. "The Elrics are with you. If you need anything, just let us know."_

* * *

Edward and Winry stood outside of the Bowens' door for a few seconds in solemn silence. Eventually the two exchanged a glance, perhaps preparing each other for the scene they were about to step into, and Ed firmly knocked on the door. It took probably ten seconds or so before they heard somewhat shuffling footsteps and saw the door open in front of them. John was dressed in his regular daytime clothes, but that was the only thing that seemed upkept about him. His hair looked like he just rolled out of bed, and there were obvious bags under his eyes, which were filled with an almost hallow sadness and disbelief. When he saw the two Elrics, he looked surprised, but only for a second, afterwhich he gave the two an extremely small smile, which, to Ed, seemed like he was genuinely happy to see them. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Mornin', you two. Come on in."

After telling them not to even bother taking off their muddy shoes, which they did anyway, he led them into the dinning room, where Clara sat staring at the table, her hands folded in deep thought. Upon hearing then enter, she looked up. Her eyes were deep red and puffy from crying, and, at the sight of her friends, she looked as if she were about to tear up again. She stood to greet them, but Winry had already briskly walked over and pulled her into a tight hug, which the other woman gladly accepted, gripping at her friend's shirt in a sudden resurgence of anguish.

The two women stood quietly hugging for a while, but Ed, finding the pressing silence unbearable, turned to John and said, "Anais called and told us."

Mr. Bowen nodded in understanding, his expression unchanging. Perhaps he couldn't display anymore grief than he already had. "Dr. Matthews came by and looked over her. He said her lungs failed sometime in the middle of the night. She was asleep though, so she didn't feel anything. That makes me feel a little better…I guess."

"Yeah," was all Ed could think of to say. It brought him some comfort as well to know that Lydia's bright light didn't go out with any struggling or fear. She passed peacefully in her sleep, which was what any parent could really wish for for their critically ill child.

Not that it made the fact that she was gone any less painful.

"Anyway, the Doctor said he'd spread the word around town. Anais probably decided to take of the mantel. You're the first ones to come by though."

"Sorry. We just thought…"

"Don't be sorry. I'm not sure about Clara, but seeing you guys has already made me feel a little better, especially after what happened with Aaron…"

Edwards heart somehow sunk even lower at the reminder that his son had already heard the horrible news. He exchanged a glance with Winry, who now stood by Clara, her arm wrapped around her shoulders. Winry looked down at the floor for a second, then up at John, hesitantly asking, "How did he take it?"

The man let out a long heavy sigh, looking down at the floor as well. "As well as could be expected. He came knocking at our door about an hour ago. He just smiled, told us good morning, and…" His voice cracked a bit at the memory, "he asked if he and Lydia could go play at the schoolyard."

Clara squeaked a little bit, interrupting her husband. Winry squeezed her shoulders a bit tighter as she wiped her eyes. "I just…I just couldn't take it," she told them, her voice cracking heavily. "He looked at me with those big, innocent eyes of his and I…I just hugged him so tight and cried. I cried so much."

Ed could almost imagine the scene: his son staring at the woman in confusion as she sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder, not knowing yet what had become of his best friend. "What exactly did say to him?"

"We tried to tell him gently, obviously, but…he's a smart kid," John explained, almost looking ashamed. "We told him that…Lydia had left last night to go to heaven. That just made him confused and he asked us why, and we said because…God wanted her too."

A sob came from his throat, interrupting him, and he looked down for a second, his face contorted in grief. Ed put a comforting hand on his shoulder, though he was sure it wasn't much of a help. The former alchemist almost felt like crying himself, and his wife had tears streaming down her face already from the recount.

After a minute or so, John still looked to be overcome with grief. Edward squeezed his eyes shut for a second, trying to compose himself. The last thing the Bowens needed was their own guests breaking out into sobs. They were the only ones allowed to cry right now.

"It's alright," he assured the other man quietly, squeezing his shoulder a bit. "Let me talk to Aaron, then we'll get out of your hair if you want us to."

Clara, who'd begun crying again after seeing her husband break down, sniffled and looked at the Elric man, confused. "What do you mean?"

That comment seemed a little weird, but Ed was sure she simply hadn't heard him clearly. "Just let me talk to Aaron for a second. Is he in the backyard?"

Mrs. Bowen's eyebrows furrowed even more, not understanding something, then suddenly her eyes widened somewhat in realization, though worry now replaced her confusion. "Aaron…Aaron isn't here."

An anvil appeared in Edward's stomach. Winry quickly turned to him at her friend's words, and he could see the sudden worry in her eyes.

Seeing their confusion and sudden concern, John furrowed his eyebrows as well. "He was obviously really upset by the news. He got angry and said that we were lying, and when we promised we weren't, he just ran off. We…we though he'd just run back home but…"

"We haven't seen him all morning," Winry informed him, speaking quickly like she tended to do when she was exceedingly nervous. Edward felt his heart clench at the fear in her voice.

"It's okay, Winry." He walked over and placed his hands on her shoulders, which he hoped she couldn't feel shaking a bit. "I know a few places he could have gone. I'll go and see if I can track him down."

"Don't think you're going without me," she somewhat snapped, her eyes suddenly fiery.

"Of course not. First, though, call the house and see if he came back while we were gone. If not, then come and catch up with me. Alright?"

He really hoped she agreed to that, because he didn't wait and see. After quickly throwing on his coat and boots, he was out the door. The last thing he wanted his already panicking wife to see was him on the verge of panic himself.

 _It's one long road._ He reminded himself. _Just one long road._

So, why did he have such a horrible feeling in his gut?

The first place he checked was the schoolyard. Aaron had wanted to play with Lydia there to begin with, plus he occasionally went there when he was exceedingly bored. Unfortunately, the field was all but empty. He knocked on a few neighbors' doors, ones whose kids were friends with his son, but they hadn't seen him either. As he walked down the road, Ed tried to keep his heart from racing. He hadn't seen anything out of Winry, which might have meant Aaron was, in fact, back home. Then again, the former alchemist realized that he stupidly hadn't really told his wife where he was going, so she had no way of catching up and he had no way of knowing where Aaron was.

He felt his right shoulder begin to ache. The sensation reminded him of how his automail joints used to feel before it began to rain. Nowadays, he only seemed to get this achy when he felt exceedingly uneasy.

The last place he could possibly think of was his parents' graves. Ed and Al took the kids to say hi to the grandparents every so often, and Aaron knew that Edward went there sometimes when he was a little upset about something. On a few occasions, Aaron would even come to sit with his dad just so he would have a bit of company. Maybe the boy would seek comfort in his grandma and grandpa in his time of heartbreak.

However, to the older Elric's dismay and somewhat horror, there was no little golden-haired boy to be found. His eyes scoured the cemetery for even a hint of movement, but found nothing.

Now he was starting to panic.

 _It's one long road. There's only one way he can go._

 _I know, but…stuff happens._

Stuff happens. Stuff happens…

Clenching his fists till they were white, Edward looked down at his mother and father's tombstones. His family had always been broken…always. Since he was little kid. First Hohenheim left them, and it was just him, Al, and Mom. Then Mom died, and it was just him and Al. For the longest time, the two brothers felt like they'd never have a whole family ever again. Then they finally realized they had Winry and Granny. Granny eventually passed away, but Ed married Winry, and they had two beautiful…God, two wonderful children that he'd never dreamed of having in a million years. If anything happened to his son…his son…who he was supposed to protect…

"AARON!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. _Please hear me. You better god-damned hear me._

Unfortunately, after waiting and listening for a few minutes, he heard no response. He looked at the tombstones again, taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself, though it didn't provide much help. Still, he had to clear his head so he could think straight. Aaron was so smart for his age, but he was still only seven. Not only that, but knowledge kind of gets thrown out the window whenever one's upset. Ed knew that better than anyone. Hell, it was happening right now.

He'd been searching easily for a half-hour now, and John said Aaron had shown up at their house about an hour before he and Winry had. That meant the seven-year-old had been missing for almost two hours now. He could have easily just been hiding, wanting to be alone, but there was that one small piece of Ed's mind insisting that it was something else. Was that really his gut feeling that had saved his life on multiple occasions or was it the raw, hysterical parental fear eating at him?

"Brother!" The sound of Al's voice broke Ed out of his thoughts. He turned just in time to see his younger brother running down the road towards him, somehow not slipping in the mud. The urgent look on his face didn't help Ed's nerves.

The two met at the cemetery gate. Probably getting a little too close to his brother's face, Ed immediately spurted out, "Is Aaron home?"

Alphonse stopped for a split second to breathe, panting a bit, but he shook his head. Seeing his older brother immediately deflate and somehow gain an even more worried expression, he quickly added, "I think I know where he is though. I ran into Mika on the way here, and he said Aaron ran past him about an hour ago." He paused for a second, either to catch the rest of his breathe or to recount the memory. "It looked like he was heading toward our old house."

This caught Edward's attention. While he was planning on eventually doing so, he'd never taken Aaron up on the hill to see the burnt remains of the former Elric family home. Taking him there would mean having to explain the whole story that came with it, and Ed wasn't about to tell his seven-year-old son about their failed human transmutation or the fact that his uncle used to be a hallow suit of armor or that there'd been a plan to sacrifice the entire Amestrian population so some bearded bastard could obtain God or some shit. No – that was a story for another day _many_ years in the future. He tried to think about why Aaron would go there of all places, but he couldn't think of any logical reasons. "You sure?"

Al nodded. Ed thought for a moment before telling him, "Okay. I'll go up there and see if I can find him." Then he suddenly remembered something and, rubbing his neck in embarrassment, added, "Could you go and meet up with Winry? I sort of left her behind at the Bowens'."

"Oh, trust me, she cursed you out on the phone," Al mentioned, though he still looked serious and also worried about his nephew. "We'll keep looking down here just in case."

"Right."

And just like that, the two brothers bolted off in separate directions. It took Ed only about five minutes to reach the site of his childhood home. In all honesty, he couldn't remember the last time he'd visited it, which must have meant it had been awhile. Coming up on the crest of the hill, he noticed that, obviously, not much had changed. There were still remnants of the stone foundation of the house, as well as the charred remains of wooden beams and plaster strewn about the area. The tall tree that had stood there his whole life still towered above the land, though the swing that had once been tied to its branches had fallen to the ground, the rope straps having been weathered down. From what he could tell, there was also some more vegetation beginning to grow on the burnt remains, slowly but surely hiding them from the world.

Then there was the grave – the memorial for the poor soul the Elric brothers had accidentally transmuted that horrible night in an attempt to bring their mother back. The two had actually been both relieved and horrified to find out that what they'd created hadn't, in fact, been their mother, but they were equally remorseful for the other soul they had made suffer in the process. Only a simple, small stone marked the grave of the stranger, right in the middle of what used to be the basement, but it was clear to any passerby what it was. Maybe that was why, in mourning the loss of his best friend, a little boy now sat in front of the makeshift tombstone, his knees pulled up to his chest and his eyes lost in thought.

Upon seeing that familiar head of golden hair and that tiny figure, Ed almost felt as if he were weightless. Continuing to run toward the remains, he called out, "Aaron!"

The boy jumped and turned toward him, startled by his shouts. It took him a couple seconds, but he eventually recognized his father coming towards him. To Edward's surprise, Aaron was immediately on his feet and running to him as well, his face suddenly scrunched up with emotion. Ed dropped to his knees just before the met, and Aaron slammed into him, both of them hugging the other tightly. The man heard his son start to cry into his shoulder – the exact reason, he wasn't sure of yet, but it made his heart ache.

"Don't you ever do that again!" the former alchemist found himself scolding. His pent up worry, anxiety, and anger came out in his words, quickly being replaced with an immense relief. Aaron was alright. He wasn't hurt. He wasn't lost. He was right here in his father's arms, where he could protect him. Ed hadn't noticed until then, but his arms were shaking violently around his son. It occurred to him that, somehow, after all he'd been through, this had been one of the scariest situations of his life. "Mom and I have been looking everywhere for you!"

"I'm sorry…" Aaron cried, his arms still wrapped tightly around Ed's neck. "I'm really sorry, Daddy…"

Hearing the pain in his son's voice caused Ed to mentally slap himself. Now wasn't the time to be reprimanding the boy. Using a gentler tone, he asked, "Aaron, buddy, can you look at me real quick?" When his son still held tight, he gingerly pulled his arms away and held him so they could look at each other, "Hey…"

Aaron's eyes were basically bloodshot, but besides that, Edward could tell that he was downright exhausted from everything that had happened. His clothes were rather muddy from running and sitting on the ground, and his hair was mess from not being combed. Still, he wasn't hurt, which was all Ed was really concerned with. Well…at least physically…

Reaching out, he wiped a bit of mud off Aaron's face and gave him a small smile. Petting his hair down, he said, "That was kind of rotten of you to skip out on breakfast without telling us. You'll have to say sorry to Trisha for not eating her pancakes…"

"Dad…" Aaron interrupted quietly, looking down at the ground. "Lydia died."

Ed's hand froze on top of his son's head, and he felt his chest constrict with helplessness. His smile faded, and he also spoke with a quiet voice, "I know. Her mommy and daddy told me."

"But why?" The boy's voice began to crack, his face constricting like he was holding back tears. "She wasn't sick anymore, so why did God take her to heaven? Now that she's in heaven…she can't come back…."

"Aaron…" Ed felt his throat close up a bit. He'd always seeing Winry cry. Seeing their children cry was hundred times worse. "She got sick again when it started raining. God…" He swallowed hard. How was he supposed to explain something he had trouble believing in himself? "God took her to heaven so she wouldn't be sick anymore and so she wouldn't be sad."

"But she wasn't sad!" Aaron insisted, tears filling his eyes once more. "She didn't want to go to heaven! She wanted to stay here!"

"Buddy, no one ever wants to go to heaven until…"

"Then why do they!? Why does God make people die and go to heaven if they don't want to!? It just makes everyone sad!"

Once he said this, the boy covered his eyes and began to sob again. Meanwhile, his father just stared at him for a moment, completely frozen. How on earth was he supposed to answer that? He couldn't just say, _Well, God has nothing to do with it. People's bodies aren't meant to last forever, and sicknesses just speed up the process._ No, he'd never forgive himself if he told him that. Still, he also couldn't say, _It's all apart of God's plan. He works in mysterious ways._ He didn't want to lie to Aaron and tell him something that he thought was mostly bullshit, but he didn't want to just slam the Book of Logic and Science on him. Besides, while Ed assumed he knew quite a bit about how this all worked (he _had_ technically met God on multiple occasions, after all), there was no real guarantee he had the whole picture.

Finally, he just took a deep breath and, looking solemnly at his son, told him, "I don't know, buddy. I honestly don't…but…" He gingerly reached out and took Aaron's hands from his eyes, making his son look at him through his tears. His father wiped those away as well. "I _do_ know that Lydia doesn't want you to cry because she's up in heaven now."

Aaron sniffled. "But I'm gonna miss her…"

"And that's alright. It's alright to miss her," Ed actually found himself chuckling, becoming somewhat overcome with emotion. "My mom and dad are up in heaven, and me and Uncle Al miss them a lot. Mommy misses her mom and dad in heaven too. Still, we try to be as happy as we possibly can, because whenever we're sad, they get sad, and you're not supposed to get sad up in heaven." He wiped some more of Aaron's tears and, giving him a smile, asked, "You don't want her to cry up there, do you?"

His son, now quiet, subtly shook his head. "No."

"That's good. You know what I do whenever I start missing someone?"

Sniffle. "What?"

"I think about all the fun stuff we did together. Whenever I think about all the happy times we had, it makes me feel like they're back here with me. Though…" His smile faded a bit, the faces of so many of his passed friends flashing in front of him, "it makes me kind of sad that they're not really here…"

He quickly caught himself, realizing he probably shouldn't have added that last part, but Aaron just stared at him, clearly thinking about the advice he'd just been given. After a few moments of silence, he hesitantly asked, "So, I could think about when we caught those lightning bugs?"

Ed's smile returned, glad he was making some kind of leeway. He remembered his son, daughter, and niece, in addition to the curly haired Bowen girl squealing in the twilight as they chased around little flying lights in the backyard. "Yeah."

"Or when Uncle Al made that slide for us with alchemy?"

"You can think of anything at all, as long as it makes you happy."

Aaron looked at the ground, considering this. Finally, he said, "Okay. I'll try."

"That's good." The Fullmetal Alchemist stood, smiling gently and holding his hand out to his son. "Let's go back home, huh? Your mom's really worried about you."

The boy didn't even hesitate to take his dad's hand, something that pleasantly surprised Edward. Lately, he'd been going through a phase where he didn't want to show that kind of affection to his parents, entering the awkward years between little kid and pre-teen. The two of them walking down the hill together. Halfway down, though, Ed felt the urge to add something to what he'd said.

"Aaron, I'm gonna tell you something, okay?"

"Okay."

"You're gonna know a lot of people who are going to go to heaven, and I know that sounds really sad, but they won't want you to cry either because you miss them. People are going to…die and go to heaven, but you just have to keep thinking about the happy stuff you did together and live how they want you too, okay?"

"Okay."

"Remember that…sometimes it's better to know someone and have them go to heaven then to never know them at all, because then you wouldn't have had so many fun memories with them."

"Okay…"

Aaron gripped his hand a bit tighter, and Ed got the feeling he wanted to just walk in silence. For a couple minutes, that's exactly what they did, but when they reached the edge of the cemetery, Aaron spoke in a quiet voice, "Dad…?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry for scaring you."

Ed squeezed his hand tighter. "It's okay."

They walked a few more steps. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't tell Mom…that I cried."

"Okay, I won't…but there's nothing with crying, you know."

"I know…but still don't tell."

"I won't….I promise."

* * *

 **Gave that one a kind of bittersweet ending, didn't I? Oh, well. It's better than a full whack in the face of depression.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you haven't already, please follow and/or favorite this story and/or me, and be sure to leave a review to tell me what you think!**

 **That's all for now, and I hope you have a wonderful day!**


	14. Back to Xing

**I HAVE UPDATED AND COLLEGE HASN'T KILLED ME YET! HOORAY!**

 **Once again, sorry for the long wait. Like I've said, I'm in a really intense college program and only really get the opportunity to really write during breaks, so updates will most likely be a few months apart. Still, I managed to get this out just a spring break is ending, so yay!**

* * *

 **Al, Mei, and Nina pay a visit to Xing - the first since the young girl was born. Just a little thing so we could get some more Al and Mei stuff, as requested (that, and I also love writing them), and so we could get a little more insight into some stuff. I know that description is super bad and vague, but, either way, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Al had seen so much in his life, some of which was beautiful, and some not as much. One thing he was sure of, though, was that he hadn't seen a more heartwarming sight than his five-year-old daughter turning to him with wide, wonder-filled eyes as they rode on their donkeys, the Imperial castle and Xingese capitol having just appeared over the horizon. "Daddy, look at the pretty building!"

"I see it," he assured her with a smile. Even he felt his heart swelling with nostalgia at the sight of the castle, where he'd lived for over a year and made so many memories. His mastery of alkahestry, late night talks with Zampano and Jerzo, the occasional spar with Ling, his lessons with Mei, their first kiss…

It'd been nine years since he or Mei had been to the East, the last time being for their wedding. They'd meant to visit every couple of years, but it seemed that whenever they started considering the idea, something would come up – finding out they had a baby on the way, for example. Al had always felt guilty for not being able to come back for so long. They lived in Amestris, where he was able to be with his brother and Winry, watch his niece and nephew grow up, and keep up with childhood friends, while all Mei had been able to do was exchange monthly letters with friends and family. She had admitted that she did miss seeing them at times, but that she had no regrets about being in Amestris. Still, it just felt so unfair. Even if they _did_ decide to move to Xing, the change would be extremely hard for Nina, so it was pretty much out of the question now.

His wife pulled her donkey alongside theirs, smiling brightly at the familiar sight of her home with excitement in her eyes. Looking at their daughter, she informed her, "That's where Uncle Ling lives."

"Really!?" The tiny girl grew even more wide-eyed at this information. She turned to the castle again, examining it once more, before saying matter-of-factly, "He's gotta have a lot of money."

"Nina!" Al exclaimed in surprise, though he couldn't suppress his laughter at her innocent comment, and neither could Mei. They had yet to inform Nina of her mother's regal status, mostly because the Imperialist royalty of Xing was rather unlike the princesses and knights she read about in fairy tales. They figured that once she actually saw what it was like, then it would be a little easier to explain.

"Well, it's good thing we finally made it," Al said, looking at his wife and daughter. "I think we're just about out of water."

"And it's really hot," Nina added.

"Let's not waste our time then," Mei told them, the childlike anticipation apparent in her eyes. "We don't want to keep my impatient brother waiting."

* * *

"I hope you will find your room most comfortable," their escort said as they stepped into the guest bedroom. Al felt the nostalgia really hitting him now. It looked almost exactly like his old bedroom way back when – cool, white marble floors, decorative red wallpaper, one giant window where one could sit and see for miles, various art hanging from the walls. The only difference was that, instead of one large bed, there were two – one for him and Mei and one for Nina.

The five-year-old gaped at the ginormous bed, which was easily twice as big as her more-to-scale bed back in Risembool. Looking at her father with big eyes, she asked, "Is that _my_ bed?"

Chuckling, he replied, "I think so."

She smiled widely, running over to it. "Yay! I get a grown-up bed!"

Mei giggled at her daughter's excitement before turning to the servant, who'd been standing in silence. "Thank you for showing us the way. You're free to go."

"Of course, my lady. His Majesty should be with you shortly."

The man then left them, softly closing the door behind him. Alphonse turned back to Nina, only to laugh at her struggling to pull herself up onto her grown-up bed. Walking over, he went to pick her up and help her, but she quickly said, "No, Daddy! I can do it!"

"Okay," he said, proceeding to stand by and watch her. It took a couple more seconds, but she was able to manage. Once sitting on the covers, she was quiet for a moment, panting a bit from the exertion, before turning to her father and smiling cheekily.

With a smirk, he told her, "Maybe we should get you a step stool."

"I'm sure I can have that arranged."

The three Elrics turned in surprise to see the Emperor of Xing leaning against the doorway, smirking. Sometimes, Al wondered if Ling had somehow used the Philosopher's Stone on himself after bringing it back to his country, because the man looked no older than he had when they'd last seen each over about five years ago. His black hair was up in a bun, and he wore some blue and golden robes, showing that he'd recently been attending his kingly duties.

"Well, that _was_ fast," Mei chuckled as she rushed over to him, throwing her arms around him in a hug, which he gladly returned. Pulling away, she told him, "We thought you'd be in a meeting or something."

"Oh, I was," Ling confirmed, his smirk even more prominent. "You guys came just in time. My advisors were very close to talking me to death. I was in much need of a break." He chuckled, and after a few seconds of silence. his smirk melted into a warm smile. "Regardless, it's good to see you, sister."

"You're looking well, Ling," Al said loudly, smirking himself.

"Ah, yes!" the man smiled widely, spreading his arms. "My favorite Elric brother!"

The three adults laughed as the two men embraced, clapping each other on the back. Ling pulled away, still keeping a friendly hand on Al's shoulder. With a playful smile, he added, "Don't tell Ed."

The younger man chuckled. "We wouldn't want a boot in your face, now, would we?"

"Hey, I can arrest him for that now, and he knows it." The king's attention then turned to the second bed in front of them, where Nina had been watching their exchange with hesitant curiosity, looking up at her parents and the stranger with her big golden eyes. Smiling at his niece, Ling addressed her, "You must be Nina. Your mother has told me a lot about you in her letters."

The girl folded her arms into her crossed legs – her protective stance. "Hi…"

"Nina, this is your Uncle Ling," Mei informed her daughter, smiling gently. "He's the one who lives here."

"That's right. The last time I saw you was when you'd just come out of your mommy's belly, but I'm sure you don't remember that much, do you?"

Nina shook her head, but her demeanor relaxed a bit when she realized Ling was family. Sitting up a bit more, she hesitantly asked, "So…this is your house?"

"It sure is, though _house_ is quite a modest way of putting it," the king answered, laughing a bit.

Nina giggled somewhat as well, though Al was sure she hadn't quite understood what he had said. Still, she smiled up at him. "It's very pretty."

"Why, thank you. If you want, I'd be glad to take you around and show you everything." The royal turned to the girl's parents, giving them something between a well-meaning smile and a smirk, if that was even possible. "Maybe we can give your mom and dad a little break after that long trek across the desert. I'm sure they're pretty tired."

"Yeah, it was really hot!" Nina felt to inform him.

"I'm sure. What do you say, you two? Is it alright if we leave you two alone for a while?" Wink.

"I don't see why not," Mei smiled, though she still landed a solid punch to her brother's shoulder for his insinuation, making the man wince. Turning to the young girl, she said, "Make sure Uncle Ling shows you _everything,_ okay?"

"Mm-hm!" Nina nodded furiously, smiling from ear to ear.

"I'll return her to you at dinner, how does that sound?"

Suddenly, a yawn escaped Alphonse's mouth. Stretching a bit, he commented, "The perfect amount of time for a nap."

The king laughed. "A well-deserved one, I'm sure. We'll see you later." Turning to his niece, he held out his hand, smiling amiably, "Shall we get started, Nina?"

She smiled widely, not even hesitating to grab his hand or start using a familiar nickname. "Okay, Uncle!" As the two of them walked out the door, the young girl turned back and yelled, "Sleep tight, Daddy!"

This got a hearty laugh out of her parents. "Thanks, Sweetie. I will."

And with that, the two left them. Mei chuckled, turning to her husband with a loving playful smile. She put her hands on his shoulders, and his found her waist. Planting a brief kiss on his lips, she pondered aloud, her voice slightly suggestive, "Now, what to do…"

"Hey, I was serious about the nap thing," he admitted, chuckling and kissing her forehead at her disappointed, pouty look. As he broke away from her and walked toward the bed, he heard her mumble, "You're no fun."

Al laughed once more, only to have it cut off by something soft and fluffy hit the back of his head rather hard. Spinning around, he caught his wife smirking childishly at him, a small pillow in her hand. He couldn't help but smirk back, but just to spite her, he promptly took off his shoes and lay down on their bed, closing his eyes. After a few moments, he heard Mei's soft footsteps head over to him, and the bed sunk a bit as she sat next to him. When he opened his eyes, her face was leaned over his, a loving smile on her face. Reaching forward and running her fingers through his hair, she mused, "You've gotten old, my love."

Grinning cheekily, he responded, "If being only thirty-one means I'm old, then I'm in trouble."

She giggled again, leaning down and kissing him, her lips lingering for a moment. After pulling away, she promptly lay down beside him, laying her head in the crook of his arm and resting a hand on his chest. "I guess a nap wouldn't be too bad." A few seconds of silence passed before she sighed, adding, "Perhaps we _are_ getting old."

"No," Al assured her, smiling as he closed his eyes. "We're just parents."

* * *

"And…And then Uncle Ling let me jump in the fountain and splash around!" Nina told her parents excitedly, flinging some of her rice onto the floor as she's flailed her arms dramatically.

Mei sighed exasperatingly, though she smiled lovingly at her daughter, "Make sure you actually eat your food now, sweetheart."

Alphonse set his chopsticks down his plate, having finished his own food. Smiling across at his daughter, he said, "Sounds like you had a pretty good time."

Ling chuckled, popping some chicken in his mouth. Upon swallowing he said, "With how hot it's been lately and everything that's been going on, I almost felt like diving in myself."

Al raised a somewhat concerned eyebrow at his brother-in-law. "What exactly has been going on?"

Before the king could answer, Nina turned to him and innocently asked, "Could we play again tomorrow, Uncle Ling?"

The Xingese man smiled, reaching over and patting her head. "As much as I'd like to, I'm afraid I have a lot of work to do. You have many young cousins on the palace grounds though that I'm sure would be happy to play with you." Turning back to Al, he answered, "Nothing to worry about, I assure you. I've just been feeling a little overwhelmed by my duties. It happens from time to time."

"Is there anything we can help you with?" Mei suggested, genuine concern in her eyes.

"Thanks for the offer, but I believe I can handle it. I'm a big king, now." He winked and smirked, but Al could see the tired, calculating look in his eyes. Clearly, his burdens were more than he was letting on. Still, the Elric figured it was best to keep quiet, at least for now.

His wife looked like she was opening her mouth to say something, but she was interrupted by the door to the dining hall opening and a familiar voice calling out. "Pardon the intrusion, your Majesty."

Al turned his head toward the voice, but not before catching a glimpse of Mei's face lighting up, her eyes sparkling and her mouth spread into a bright smile. "Mother!"

Indeed, the head of the Chang family stood in the doorway, smiling playfully at her daughter. She was in her mid-50s, though she could've easily passed for twenty years younger. Her raven black hair was twisted back into a low bun, and there was little to no makeup on her short, round face. She wore a gorgeous, but not flashy, blue kimono with some orchids designed on it. Despite that, she looked beautiful in a simple way – much like Alphonse's wife. Out of her three daughters, Al thought Mei resembled her mother the most and that, when they got older, she would look nearly identical to her.

Speaking of Mei, she immediately jumped up from the table and ran to her mother, who quickly walked to meet her. The two clashed together in a tight embrace, staying that way for a while, taking in the other. Al smiled lovingly at the bright smile on his wife's face, though his heart grew a bit heavy at the tears in her eyes, despite them being happy ones. It served as a reminder of how long it'd been since they had seen each other, and the thought made him feel slightly guilty. He tried to push it aside though, getting up from the table as well and walking over as they broke apart from their hug.

"Lady Kaili," Ling also smiled from the end of the table. "I was expecting you would come by at some point."

"Why, of course. I came as soon as I heard you'd arrived." Mei's mother briefly smiled at the Emperor before turning back to her daughter, taking her face in her hands as she remarked, "Oh, my darling, you're certainly no girl anymore. Look how you've grown!"

"Somehow, she grows more beautiful by the day," Al felt the need to add, throwing said woman a tender glance, before smirking at her mother. "I think so, anyway."

Lady Kaili turned to her son-in-law with another bright smile, wrapping her arms around him in a warm hug. He'd always loved her hugs, though they didn't embrace often. They reminded him of the ones he used to receive from his own mother so long ago. "And you grow more handsome every time I see you, Alphonse, dear."

Pulling away, Al rubbed his neck, a slight blush on his cheeks. "Please, my lady, you embarrass me."

The older woman giggled. "I try, and please, I've told you, you can call me Mother if you'd like."

He felt a slight pang in his heart, like he did whenever she suggested that. It's not that he didn't greatly admire the woman – far from it - and she actually resembled his mother, Trisha, in many ways – being kind beyond measure while also having a playful side, having a warm voice that could lull any child to sleep in seconds, loving her children unconditionally. Still, something just felt _wrong_ about calling her "Mother." He knew it was rather silly, but he almost felt like he'd be betraying his own mom if he were to do that, so he always tried to avoid it, constantly acting like he forgot or something like that.

He chuckled awkwardly, not knowing how exactly to respond. Mei, seeing this and knowing all about his dilemma, turned to the table and smiled at their daughter. "Nina, come here."

The girl, who'd been watching the exchange curiously from a distance, hesitantly did as she was told, walking slowly over to them. She stood in between her parents, shyly holding onto her father's pantleg.

"Oh, my…" Kaili smiled joyfully at her granddaughter with tears in her eyes., this being the very first time seeing her in person. She gingerly knelt down onto the floor in front of the girl, holding out her hand and inviting her to come closer. Surprisingly, Nina walked closer without any coaxing from either of her parents. Her grandmother took one of her hands, caressing the cheek with the other and surveying her face. "Goodness, what a pretty flower you are. You look exactly like your mother did when she was your age." She noticed something and, glancing at Alphonse with a tender smile, noted, "And yet she has her father's eyes."

"Yeah…" Al smiled softly down at his daughter. He remembered the first time she opened her eyes after she was born, after nearly half of day of Mei being in labor and him being filled with crippling anxiety, after months and months of waiting to be a father. As he was holding her, she'd slowly opened her eyes and looked at him and…he just froze. Here was this beautiful, precious new life just brought into the world, and she was staring back at him with his own eyes. Yes, Aaron and Trisha had golden eyes too, but this was different. This was _his_ child, who he'd helped give life to – the result of the love he and his wife shared. It was true, she looked exactly like her mother – her hair, her round nose, her mouth that parted ever so slightly when she was thinking – but, out of all that, she inherited _his_ eyes, and, for whatever reason, that made him so unbelievably happy.

Mei smiled lovingly as well between her daughter and husband. She always told him that his eyes were his most attractive feature, even sometimes joking it was the only reason she'd fallen in love with him. Also kneeling beside Nina, she told her, "Nina, dear, this is your grandma."

Nina turned to her mom, looking slightly confused. "Grandma?"

"That's right. She's my mommy, which makes her your grandma."

"Oh," was all the girl said in response, turning back to Lady Kaili and studying her face for a minute. For whatever reason, she didn't look all too convinced, which Al found slightly odd. She'd accepted Ling as family earlier with no problem. Surely gaining a grandparent in addition to uncle didn't seem _that_ weird to her.

The woman chuckled a bit, not offended at all. "I understand your skepticism, my darling. It's not every day you have a strange lady you've never met come up and say she's family."

"It's gotta be a little jarring," Ling agreed, standing from the table. The servant who'd escorted Mei's mother in was now beside him, having just relayed a message. The king smiled, but Al once again noticed the tired look in his eye. "I've just been informed that I'm to return to my meeting with my advisors. They're not too pleased with me leaving earlier."

Mei frowned, slightly guilty. "This late? I hope we didn't get you in too much trouble."

"Nonsense. I'm the emperor. I can't get in trouble." After thinking for a second, he added jokingly, "Well, I guess I _can_ be reprimanded and lectured, but don't worry. I'll be fine. I'll leave you three to catch up." Turning to his niece, he said, "Goodnight, Nina. I hope you sleep well."

Nina's smile returned, and she nodded. After saying goodnight to the rest of them, Ling took his leave. The door to the dining hall hadn't even closed before the young girl began yawning widely. Chuckling, Al picked his daughter up. "Someone's tired."

"No, I'm not," she argued, though she contradicted herself by rubbing her eyes.

"Look's like it's time for bed," Kaili gave her granddaughter a motherly smile before turning to her parents. "It is pretty late. Maybe we can get together for lunch tomorrow."

"It's too bad. You just got here," Mei remarked, some sadness in her eyes.

"Hey, how about I go put Nina to bed and you two could stay and talk awhile?" Al suggested. "I'm getting a little tired anyway."

"You sure, Al?"

He nodded, smiling at his wife. "You two haven't seen each other in years. It's clear that there's some catching up to do."

Mei smiled tenderly at him. "Alright, then." She walked over and kissed Nina on the cheek. "Goodnight, my love. You be good for Daddy, okay?"

Their daughter nodded tiredly. "Night, Mommy."

The Elric woman then turned and kissed her husband. "Thank you."

"No problem." He kissed her back, quietly adding, "I love you."

She blushed somewhat, kissing him one more time. "Goodnight. I shouldn't be long."

"Take all the time you need."

* * *

"Hey, Daddy," Nina asked quietly through her yawn. He pulled her blanket over her and she tiredly snuggled into it. "Is that lady really my grandma?"

"She sure is," he replied, smiling and kissing her forehead.

The five-year-old furrowed her eyebrows. "And she's Mommy's mommy?"

"Mm hmm."

"But why is she here and your mommy's up in heaven?"

Al looked at his daughter in complete surprise. Sitting on the bed next to her, he looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"All of Aaron and Trisha's grandma and grandpas are up in heaven, and your mommy and daddy are up in heaven, so why isn't she up in heaven with them?"

So, _that's_ why she'd looked so confused earlier. Though her question was rather sad, the girl's father couldn't help but chuckle at such an innocent question. "Nina, not all grandma and grandpas have to be in heaven."

"I know." She snuggled further down into her covers, slightly embarrassed, but there also a small amount of sadness in her eyes. "Ours are, though."

Al's smile faded, his heart clenching up. He thought about not only his daughter, but his niece and nephew having to go around town and see all of their classmates and friends having dinner and playing with their grandparents, while all they had were tombstones to talk to and not even receive a response. He and Ed never knew their biological grandparents either, but having Granny Pinako there had always filled that void, so he couldn't exactly relate. The thought was enough to make him sad, though.

He gave her a half-hearted smile. "Well, Grandma Kaili's here with us now, and you're gonna get to play with her a lot while we're here. That sound fun?"

The warmth of her blanket was clearly getting to the girl. Eyes drooping, she nodded ever so slightly. "Mm hmm…."

Now he was smiling for real. Kissing his daughter on the cheek, he told her, "Sweet dreams, Nina."

"Love you, Daddy…"

He brushed some of her hair out of her face, smiling lovingly as his child drifted to sleep. Blowing out the candle on her nightstand, he whispered, "I love you too…very much."

Not being very tired, he sat down on his and Mei's bed and began reading his book – a recent memoir of an alchemist from the South who'd discovered a new, more efficient design for transmutation circles. In all honestly, it was absolutely brilliant, so much so that Al was surprised he and Ed hadn't thought of it first, but hey, they couldn't be geniuses all the time. Chuckling to himself, he thought, _Our wives know that all too well._

After about forty-five minutes, Mei came through the door. Seeing her husband reading, she made a sour face. "You liar."

He looked at her innocently and somewhat frightened, not quite sure what she meant. "What?"

"You said you were tired!" She whisper-yelled this, as she was aware of Nina sleeping just feet away. Walking over, she sat on the bed beside him, giving him a chastising glance. "Now I feel guilty for making you put Nina to bed."

She reached up and undid her hair tie, shaking her black hair loose so it fell down, reaching nearly the middle of her back. Al adoringly watched her as she did this. He always loved when she had her hair down. It framed her face, bringing out her features and making her even more beautiful than when she had it up, which was most of the time, though she was gorgeous then too. Closing his book and setting it on the nightstand, he said, "You know I don't mind. She went down easy tonight anyway, and besides, I could tell you wanted to talk to your mom."

Mei narrowed her eyes at him for a few seconds, but eventually relaxed, sighing in defeat and smiling. Leaning over, she kissed his cheek and said, "Thank you again."

"Nothing to thank me for. So, she tell you anything juicy about what's been going on around here?"

"Well, we didn't really get to much, but…" His wife's smile slowly dropped in thought, as if she were worried about something.

Sitting up more and looking at her with concern, he inquired, "What?"

She pursed his lips, looking at him seriously. "Did you notice how Ling seemed a little stressed during dinner? You know, when he was talking about all of his duties lately?"

He leaned closer, glad that he wasn't making that up in his head. "Yeah. Your mom tell you something about that?"

His wife nodded, sighing tiredly. "Mother says that there's really nothing going on publicly that should be bothering him. We're not at war with anyone, trade is doing well, and the people are happier than they've ever been, but…there's been a rumor going around all the noble clans lately that his advisors are…pressuring him to pick a bride."

Al's eyes widened somewhat in surprise, but, at the same time, he didn't feel all too shocked, knowing royal politics like he did now. Furrowing his eyebrows, he said, "I guess we should've been expecting that. I mean…your father had multiple wives and dozens of children. Ling's been emperor for over fifteen years now, and he's never shown interest in marrying anybody in all this time."

Mei's lips tightened even more. "Not having a wife means not having any heirs, and apparently, the council isn't too thrilled about that. People are saying that there will be an arranged marriage soon. Some are even placing bets as to who he'll be marrying."

"Like who?"

"A few noble women have been named as likely candidates. Though…there are also rumors that he might marry a royal from one of the nearby countries in order to form an alliance."

Al sighed tiredly, everything finally coming together, though he didn't really like the results. He understood the reasons behind arranged marriages and such from all the time he'd spent not only in Xing but residing with other royal families during their journey further East, but he still found the whole concept unfair and cruel to the two people taken advantage of for the end goal. Maybe it was because he was an idealist and believed that love should be the one reason to marry someone, but the idea of arranged marriages left a bitter taste in his mouth. Needless to say, his heart went out to his brother-in-law. Why did he have to get married anyway? The crown could be passed down to any other family member with no problem. Then again, maybe it was just to keep up appearances…

"A lot of people are hoping he'll marry Princess Parwana."

This caught Al's attention, and he turned to his wife in complete surprise. "Parwana? From Kasur?"

The small country of Kasur had been one of their first stops in their journey to the East all those years ago. King Achyuta had been generous enough to allow them to stay in his palace and use all the resources he had available, something that their group was incredibly grateful for. They had stayed there for almost three months, and in that time, Al and Mei grew close to the king's children, who were all close to their age. Parwana was only twelve at the time, but she was very mature for her age in addition to being smart as a whip, though she was very soft-spoken around most people. She'd looked up to Mei like she was her older sister and, apparently, developed a crush on Al, which was subsequently shattered when she found out the two of them were together. They hadn't seen her since they left Kasur so long ago, so, although she was easily in her mid twenties by now, all Al could think of was that tiny, pretty twelve-year-old girl. It was hard to imagine her marrying Ling.

Mei pulled her knees to her chest, looking down at the bed. "It's a little weird to think about, but…I don't know. If Ling _were_ to marry anybody…It would be nice to be able to call her my sister…"

"Yeah, I guess…" Al flung his legs over the side of the bed, so he was now fully sitting up, facing away from her. "Still, those two don't deserve to have such a thing just thrust on them. They should be able to choose whoever they want."

"I know. I'm not too big a fan of it either, but…" He felt her shift on the bed somewhat before feeling her arms wrap around his waist as she lay her head on his back, "not every princess can be as lucky as me."

He smiled at her touch, putting his hands on hers, but still chuckled humorlessly. "We were barely lucky. The other clans would've never let you marry me if they hadn't made you give up your title."

"Hmm, let's see. Marry the man I love or keep my claim to a throne which I would never get the chance to sit on even if I _did_ keep it? A rather easy decision if I do say so myself."

He softly glanced at her, serious. "I will never be able to thank you enough for that."

"Alphonse Elric, wipe that guilty look off your face." She reached over, gently turning his face and bringing their lips to meet. After lingering a few seconds, she pulled away, this time holding his face in her hands. "I have everything I could ever want, more than any royal title could give me."

He stared into her shining determined eyes for a second before turning more toward her and wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer. She smiled, hugging him and resting her head in the crook of his neck. "I dreamed of having this for so long, and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world, Al. Never."

Al finally felt a smile grow on his face, taking in her warmth as he held her tighter. Lifting her chin, he gave her something between a loving smile and smirk, "You always seem to make me speechless, you know that?"

She giggled, that beautiful sparkle returning to her eyes. Closing the gap between them, she pecked him on the lips again, saying, "If I didn't, then I'd be worried." Eyes softening, she ran her fingers through his hair, "Everything will work out. Somehow, it always does."

"Right. Now, how about we both go to bed?" He meant this genuinely, but it also came out slightly more suggestive than he'd meant it. As he leaned in to kiss her again, she put a finger to his lips, giving him a smirk. "With our daughter right there, you might want to stop yourself, mister. Besides…I'm tired."

And with that, she lay down on her side of the bed and turned away from him, not even saying another word. Al just stared at her for a moment, not quite sure if he felt amused or disappointed, but, nevertheless, he lay down on his side as well, quietly chuckling, "My darling, you're no fun."

* * *

 **And there we go! I know not a whole lot happened in this, but I figured having a slow, simple chapter would do some good. That and, again, I got to write some stuff for Al and Mei.**

 **If you liked this, please follow/favorite this story and/or me, if you haven't already! Also feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think of this chapter or the story over all. I'm always open to feedback! Also, be sure to check out my other FMA story - "The Truth Within The Truth."**

 **That's all for now! I hope you have an amazing day!**


	15. Back at It

**Hello all! I am not dead! I apologize for this chapter having taken so long, especially since it's not as long as some of my others, but I assure you that I have been writing at every opportunity possible - when I didn't have complete writer's block that is.**

 **Once again, I apologize, but I'm sure you guys are used to these chapters taking forever by now.**

* * *

 **Ed and Al's lives certainly aren't filled with the peril and stealth like they used to be, and they're more than content with that, especially with all they have now, but when they happen upon a hairy situation during a trip to Central, they can't simply stand by and let people get hurt. Still, they're a little rusty. How much will they really be able to do?**

* * *

 _Come….on!_ Edward grit his teeth as he struggled forward in the air vent. It was bad enough that he was out of practice from sneaking around, but the fact that he was suddenly wishing he was small again made him pissed and ready to kick somebody's ass.

Now, it wasn't his and Al's fault they'd been sucked into a rescue mission. Fifteen minutes ago, the two of them had been in the library across the street from Central Bank, consolidating their research with the files being kept there, when they'd heard the all too familiar sound of gunfire. It didn't take much to figure out what was going on – looking outside to see the broken window of the bank and hearing shouting coming from inside was enough.

When the two of them had reached the street, a decent sized crowd had emerged outside, concerned and fearful. A lean man in a plain blue suit stood in the doorway of the bank, his hair all greased back and his face fresh like he was ready for a day at the office. His appearance was off put, however, by the woman he had in a choke hold, his pistol pointed to her head.

"Listen up!" The man's voice was deeper than what his figure would have suggested. "My buddies and I are trying to get a rather large grant from the bank, but the nice boy at the desk told us they can't open the vault without all the codes. Now, we're in kind of a big hurry, so if the right people aren't here in fifteen minutes, I'm gonna have to blow this little miss's brains out like I did to that poor teller boy!"

To emphasize the point, he pushed the barrel harder into his hostage's head, causing her to scream out in fear. After which, he added, "Also, for a little more motivation, every minute after _that_ that we don't get what we want, we'll start picking off the rest we have in there with us! Hop to it!"

As the two of them retreated back into the bank, Edward's mind started racing. There was no possible way all of the code holders could be contacted and make it to the bank in fifteen minutes. Not only that, but the MPs would probably take a bit too, given traffic, and even then, their arrival would most likely lead to a tense standoff, which wouldn't be good for the hostages inside if the robbers kept their word.

"Al…" He turned to his brother, only to find him mirroring the same serious, yet ready expression. One shared glance between the two of them, and it was decided.

"I'll go in through the front to distract them," the younger Elric suggested as they began walking across the street. "With my alchemy, I have a better chance of protecting everyone if something goes wrong."

"You're gonna negotiate with them?"

"I'll try."

"Alright, I'll try to find a way through the back."

"Pretty high security. I doubt they even have a back door."

"The air vents, then."

"You'll have to get on the roof."

"You know me. I'll find a way."

Alphonse furrowed his eyebrows, obviously a little nervous, though Ed wasn't much better with his heart nearly breaking out of his chest. How long had it been since either of them had done something like this? They were rusty, no doubt about it, which wasn't really the best way to go into a situation like this.

"Just don't get stuck somewhere, Brother."

"Right, and make sure _you_ don't get shot. You're not bulletproof anymore, remember."

"Yeah." There was a short pause. They were nearing the crowd now. "Be careful."

Patting Al on the back, Ed began heading to the side to find his own way in. "Good luck, little brother."

Al nodded in determination, walking confidently towards the door, though Ed was pretty sure he muttered, "Our wives are going to kill us."

And that was how Edward had managed to get himself smushed into the air vent, which he'd found after climbing a nearby fire escape and making his way to the roof. After shimming around corners for a good five minutes, he heard faint talking from down one of the passage ways. As he got closer, he heard his brother's familiar voice.

"I'm giving you the chance to stop all of this. If you put your weapons down now, I'm sure I can work something out with the authorities."

"Right, Mr. Lieutenant Colonel." It was the man who'd been at the door. He spoke with a very threatening and accusing tone. "We'll just let go of all of our hostages, so your MP friends can come in and shoot us up to high hell."

"You'll have a much better chance in court if you let all of these innocent people go," Al persevered, using his authoritative, yet somehow gentle voice. "They have nothing to do this."

It was now that Ed reached the vent over the middle of the lobby. Looking through the slits of the panel, he could see only a little bit of his brother to the right, his hands raised in a non-threatening position, but none of the robbers.

There was a hearty chuckle further to the side, and another one of the robbers spoke, his voice slightly higher than the first's. "Trust me, bud. This is the _better_ option. We didn't really wanna show this off, but…"

Ed heard what sounded like clothes rustling, but what concerned him more was his brother's subsequent attempt to stifle a gasp of horror.

"Pretty, huh?" The first robber spoke proudly. "Made it myself, with a little help from Michael over there."

Ed narrowed his eyes to see if he could get a better view, but of course, no one had moved, so he still only had sight of the floor. Frustrated, he quietly grumbled. "Come on – _move._ "

"Just a little homemade recipe. My grandma passed it down to me, if you can believe it." It was now that the man stepped closer to Alphonse, becoming visible on the other side of the vent until the two of them were almost nose-to-nose. Even then, Ed could still see the hard glare in his brother's eyes. What the robber said next, he nearly whispered to Al, but Ed was just able to pick it up. "Don't call our bluff, boy. If your MP buddies try to storm this place or anybody tries to make a move out of here, Henry's gonna push that little button and make a pretty big mess in here."

The younger Elric quickly retorted in a somewhat panicked and angry tone, also keeping his voice down, "You're just going to blow yourselves up with the rest of us? What's the point of that?"

Edward's heart suddenly dropped into his stomach as he caught on. A bomb. From context clues, he guessed it and the detonator were on one of the robber's person. Yet another problem they'd have to solve in the fray.

"Hey, hey, I'm not obligated to give you my reasons, but I say it'd be much quicker than shootin' everybody."

The crook turned around gallantly as he said this, which gave Al enough time to quickly glance up and see his brother peeping through the vent. Knowing that Ed was prepped and ready, Alphonse made one last attempt to negotiate. With earnest eyes, he urged, "Please. You can stop this before it goes any further. Robbing a bank is one thing. Shooting…." He grimaced as he said this, his voice cracking with both anger and sadness. "Shooting and _killing_ someone is something you can't come back from, and you _especially_ will never be able to come back from blowing up everyone here. All of these people have lives, have _families_ and you can't take all that away from them and _yourselves_ over something as _stupid_ as getting a few million sens!"

Just now hearing about the bomb, the couple dozen hostages began to shift and mumble a bit amongst themselves. The head honcho, however, was silent for a moment, either thinking over what Al had said or simply concocting a reply. Eventually, though, he shouted, "Quiet!" promptly shutting everyone up.

There was an eerily silence for a few more seconds before the boss's footsteps echoed throughout the room. Coming closer to Alphonse, it was clear that the older man was growing more frustrated. Still, he spoke smoothly and calmly, "You really have a bark, don't ya kid? Like I said, we won't use our little toy unless the big guns go back on their end of the deal, and if we expect them to keep their end, we gotta keep our end too." He paused for a moment before chuckling, "It's been fifteen minutes."

By the time he had the barrel of his pistol aimed at Al's face, the alchemist had already clapped his hands together to transmute, while his brother was already halfway to the ground. Ed planted his feet square on the man's shoulders, sending the both of them toppling to the floor and the gun to go off and fly out of his hand. Thankfully, with the jolt, the bullet went into the ceiling rather than any of the hostages. Before the two of them had even fully landed, Al transmuted the tile floor into projectiles, knocking down the accomplice with the bomb – whom Ed could not see, but he heard his yelp of surprise.

"Bastard! Get the hell off me!" The head robber tried to push Ed off, but the blow to his back had left him both in pain and immobile. By this point, pretty much all of the hostages were screaming in fear amongst the gunfire coming from the goons probably trying to stop Alphonse, though Ed could hear his hits making contact as well.

Landing a medium punch to the boss's head and knocking him out cold, he muttered, "You stay here," before beginning to get up and help his brother.

 _Bang!_ One gunshot was accompanied by a pained yell. Edward whipped his head around to see his brother collapse to the ground, clutching his left thigh with grit teeth. The bomber, who had a large box with all sorts of wires strewn around it strapped to his torso, was on the ground over by the teller desks, not unconscious, but disoriented and without a detonator. The third and final party member – a rather tubby guy with a good amount of stubble - was still standing, many bruises slowly appearing on his body from a mixture of fists and alchemy. Looking incredibly pissed, he pointed his gun at the younger Elric's head, ready to finish the job.

"AL!" Ed's protective-big-brother instinct, along with a nice slice of rage, instantly kicked in at the sight, something he'd thought – and hoped – would never happen again. Even with that, though, he never knew how he managed to cross that room so fast.

The big man, surprised by his shouts, attempted to aim the gun at the older brother, but Ed was on him in an instant, quickly knocking his arm up out of the way and causing the bullet to once again go through the ceiling. He was then able to land a solid punch to the guy's jaw, but with the size difference between them, he only managed to knock him off balance. The crook came back at him unexpectedly fast, landing a decent hook to Ed's shoulder and knocking him into the accountant desks. The Elric quickly looked up to see the bigger man cock and ready his pistol to shoot him, but a wall of concrete emerged, alchemical sparks flashing around, and toppled down on top of him, knocking him unconscious.

Edward looked over to Alphonse a few feet away, smirking with a little pride in his eyes. "The Elric Brothers still got it."

Ed managed a small chuckle as he hurried over to his brother. The hostages, seeing that their captors were down and the gunfire had stopped, were beginning to make their way out of the building in a hasty line. With the afternoon sun, he couldn't see outside, but he was sure the MPs were out there by now – they'd be safe. A man about the brothers' age started toward them like he wanted to help, but Ed waved him off with a small, thankful smile.

As he knelt next to his brother, Al gave him a small smile of reassurance, though there was still a slight grimace on his face. "It's nothing too bad. I can heal it when we get out of here."

The older Elric managed a sigh of relief. Wrapping Al's arm around his shoulders to hoist him up, he said,"Yeah, well, I'm still taking you to the hospital."

 _BANG!_

His knees suddenly gave out, and the two of them flopped to the ground again. It was about halfway down when he felt the stinging pain in his abdomen. Involuntarily, he let go of his brother to wrap his arms around himself as he fell on his side, gritting his teeth to stifle a scream.

"Brother!" Al leaned over him with fear and shock in his eyes. He then looked up to someone behind Ed's back, his gaze now turning furious. Fast as lightning, the younger brother went to transmute…but even faster was the bullet that tore through his right upper chest, the force pushing him backward to the ground.

"Al!" Ed's cry came out more like a whimper than a scream, the pain in his stomach muffling any sound coming out of him. His brother grunted, writhing in pain whilst his leg was also still bleeding out, but said nothing.

Footsteps grew closer from behind him before Ed felt something forcefully push him onto his back. He attempted to sit up, but a foot firmly planted itself on his shoulder, holding him down. Through a grimace, the former alchemist looked up to the man with the bomb on his chest, both his eyes and gun barrel glaring down at him.

"You sons of bitches," the robber growled, his arm shaking somewhat as he pointed the gun at Ed's head. "Killing you might actually make all this bullshit worth it."

The younger man tried his best to push against his assailant's foot, but he only pushed down harder, crushing his shoulder to the point where Ed was sure he could feel the bones cracking. Not only that, but his bullet wound was really gushing blood now, and he could feel his strength quickly fading.

 _Damn it…_ They'd been too cocky. They shouldn't have taken it into their own hands. They should've waited for help. They were stupid to think they could just pick this up with no problem. They weren't the legendary Elric Brothers anymore. They hadn't been for a while.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. Now, they were going to…

 _Edward Elric, I swear, if you die, I'll send my sharpest saw blade straight through your skull!_

His whole body stiffened at the sudden voice in his head. Winry…

 _Come on, Dad! You can beat him! I know you can!_

 _Please, don't die, Dad! Mom and I will cry if you do!_

Aaron…Trisha….

 _You two have gone through too much to die here!_

 _Daddy and you have to come home!_

Mei and Nina.

"Ed…" Al struggled to get up, watching in fear as the gun grew closer to his brother's head.

 _Pow!_ "FREEZE!"

The criminal's eyes widened in surprise, knowing full well what was behind him, and followed the orders, not moving a muscle. Ed tilted his head toward the front door, his breathing becoming a little labored and his vision a bit spotty, to see three officers standing in a row – a lieutenant and two majors, though how he could see the difference in their uniforms from that distance, he wasn't sure – all stern-faced and having their guns aimed at the robber.

"Drop your weapon, put your hands in the air, and turn towards us slowly," the lieutenant ordered. Her voice was deep and smooth – it kind of reminded Ed of Riza Hawkeye. What he wouldn't give to see _her_ right now.

Edward looked back up at the man looming over him, whose eyes were scanning his surroundings. He stared at Ed for a few more seconds before glancing down at the gun in his hand, then at Alphonse a few feet away, then back to the gun. The lieutenant repeated her orders. His eyes then narrowed, and the horrible feeling Ed got in his gut was even worse than getting shot.

"DON'T!" He wasn't sure if these words came out of his mouth or Al's, or if both of them said it, but they were helpless to stop anything.

The robber whipped his body around, aiming his gun at the soldiers. Their trained minds had fired before he'd even made the 180 – the sounds of shots reverberating off the walls.

And then the bomb went off.

* * *

 **Bet you weren't expecting that ending, were ya? Here's hoping I can write and post the next chapter in a decent amount of time so you can read what happens next!**

 **Also, yes, I'm aware that the set up of a bank robbery is highly cliched, and I've never been the best at writing action, so I hope it's passable. Haha. I just know some people were asking for a chapter with slightly higher stakes and more action.**

 **That's all for now! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. Please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me, if you haven't already. If you have, then _arigato_! Also, feel free to check out my other FMA fic, _The Truth Within the Truth,_ which is another story in desperate need of an update. I should get on that.**

 **Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful day!**


	16. Back at It (Part 2)

**Yay! I'm not dead and back for the new year! Happy New Year, by the way! As always, so sorry this has taken so long, but school and extra curriculars and life and all those other excuses. True excuses - but excuses.**

 **Let's see how Winry and Mei handle their husbands' situation and how the two Elric boys end up, shall we?**

* * *

"That's all they told you!?" Anais looked at the two Elric women with shock and concern. They had just walked in the door, but the kids had already run off further into the house to play with the woman's grandchildren. Meanwhile, the adults stood close to the sisters, trying to keep their voices low but having trouble doing so.

Winry nodded solemnly, her head already hurting from scrunching her brow in worry. "She said they were in serious condition. That's it."

"That could mean a lot of things," Darren, Anais's son-in-law, grumbled bitterly. "Damn Central doctors can never give you a straight answer."

"If that's the case, then you two should get going," the old woman placed a comforting hand on Winry and Mei's shoulders. "Those boys need you now."

"Thank you so much for doing this on such short notice." Mei bowed slightly in thanks. Winry noticed that in the hour or so since the phone call they'd received from Central, it seemed like her sister had aged a couple years. Then again, she probably didn't look too much better. "We're not entirely sure when we'll be back."

"Take all the time you need there, dears. The children will be well-looked after."

"Mom!" Aaron's voice yelled from the back of the group of adults. The eleven-year-old pushed his way between them, making his way to the front. Staring up defiantly at his mother, whom he was already almost surpassing in height, he stated, "I wanna come to."

Winry sighed tiredly. As much as Winry and Mei had tried to be discreet about Ed and Al's hospitalization around the kids (despite they themselves being racked with worry and panic), Aaron had managed to pick up the situation somehow, either from eavesdropping or context clues. Looking back into the boy's golden eyes, she said calmly, "No, sweetheart, you have to stay here."

"Why?"

"To look after Trisha and Nina."

"That's what Ms. Anais is doing," her son retorted, looking desperate. "Please, Mom. If Dad and Uncle Al are gonna die…"

"They're not going to die, Aaron," she reassured him, though part of it was directed at herself as well. She placed a loving hand on his cheek and conjured up a small smile. "They used to get into this kind of stuff all the time. We're just going to make sure everything's okay."

"But…"

"You're the man of the house when your father and uncle are gone. It's your job to take care of everything here until they get back. That means taking care of your little sister and cousin and making sure that they don't worry or get sad too much, okay?"

The Elric boy looked as if he wanted to talk back some more, but apparently decided that it would be a futile gesture, and just nodded instead, defeated. Winry's smile dropped. God, he was becoming more like Ed every day.

Leaning down, she kissed him on the forehead and pulled him into a hug. "We'll call here as soon as we see Dad and Uncle Al, okay? You can talk to them then."

"Okay." Pulling away, Aaron actually gave his mom and aunt a brave smile, though the force behind it was obvious. "I'll hold down the fort here."

"That's my boy." She hugged him again. "I love you."

"Love you too, Mom."

"Trisha! Nina! Your mommies are leaving!" Anais shouted into the other room.

"Bye!" The girls shouted in unison, out-of-sight and clearly preoccupied with some kind of toy to really be invested in the situation at hand. This actually managed to get a chuckle out of Winry and Mei, which it seemed like they hadn't done in forever, given the circumstances.

After saying their final goodbyes and managing to steal kisses from the girls, the two women quickly walked to the train station, each with a small, hastily packed suitcase. The next train to Central wasn't due to arrive for another forty-five agonizing minutes, though that was only a precursor to the nearly eight-hour ride to the capital, without stops. Mei sat down on one of the benches, looking at the ground with scrunched eyebrows and a heavy frown. "I wonder how bad it really is…"

"There'll be no way of knowing until we get there," Winry admitted, sitting next to her. The officer who had called them had told her very little information other than 1) her husband and brother-in-law were admitted to the hospital with serious injuries, 2) there had been an altercation and some kind of accident, and 3) the investigation was still ongoing. When the mechanic had pleaded for more details, the officer on the other line told her, "I'm sorry, Mrs. Elric, but I can't disclose any more information." They didn't know the state of Ed and Al's injuries, what had actually happened, or anything beyond the basic "they're hurt, someone probably beat them up." God, she hated not knowing anything. It reminded her too much of the old days when those stupid brothers wouldn't tell her what they were up to and proceed to ignore her when she demanded to know how they had ended up in the infirmary.

After what seemed like an eternal pause, Winry sighed and took Mei's hand. "They're our husbands. They're the Elric Brothers…They'll be fine."

This managed to get a small smile out of Mei. "We certainly didn't fall in love with them because of their lack of stubbornness."

"Back when Ed was still a state alchemist, it seemed like he was in-and-out of the hospital every week, but everything turned out alright in the end. Everything's gonna be okay."

She couldn't help but notice she kept reassuring herself, and she felt her smile drop. Mei's disappeared as well, her worry having returned. Winry remembered the words she'd said to Ed one time: _Stuff happens._ Some unknown factor could always be put into play. Unexpected events can always happen. Why did this time feel so different?

 _Edward. Alphonse. If you two are still alive, you're definitely getting a wrench to the head for making us worry._

* * *

If it was any consolation, when Ed first woke up, he honestly didn't feel that bad, albeit extremely physically exhausted. He kind of just lay in bed with his eyes closed for a little bit, knowing exactly where he was. He'd recognize the stiff hospital mattress underneath him anywhere, and he could vaguely hear the sound of doctors walking and nurses pushing carts up and down the hall. The only thing that was somewhat of a blur at first was _why_ he was there. For half a millisecond, the former alchemist almost thought he was back in his military days, having just been beat up by some punk criminal. That's when he remembered: the bank, the robbers, getting shot, the bomb.

So, maybe he wasn't _that_ far off…

When he finally opened his eyes, he surveyed the room. Nothing special: an IV drip plugged into his arm, a table with extra equipment, a bed pan. One thing that was out of the ordinary, however, was the fact that his brother was in the bed next to him. Alphonse was placed further into the room by the window, where the mid-morning sun was shining through. To Ed's relief, his little brother was not only conscious, but sitting up and reading some kind of magazine. He was shirtless with bandages wrapped around his right shoulder and chest, where'd he'd been shot, and Ed could only assume his leg was bandaged to.

The older Elric went to sit up, but he only moved an inch before surge of soreness and pain radiated from his abdomen. He groaned a little bit. Right. He'd been stupid enough to get shot too.

Al looked over in surprise at the sudden noise from his brother, though his expression quickly turned to one of relief. Sighing, he said, "Thank goodness. I was starting to worry that you hadn't woken up yet."

Ed plopped his head down on the pillow, accepting that he couldn't sit up by himself without pain. "Why? When'd you wake up?"

"A couple hours ago. They said you'd lost more blood than me, so it'd take longer for you to recover."

"Pff. Just my luck." He ran through the events at the bank through his head. Things had _definitely_ not gone as planned, certainly not like they would have gone if they'd been fifteen years younger. At least, that's what he wanted to think. "By the way, never scare me like that again. We didn't go through all that trouble just for you to get shot in the head."

"You're one to talk!" Al retorted, his face serious. "You were stupid enough to let your guard down like you did. You know better, Brother."

"Hey, I'm rusty," Ed argued back. "Besides…" He turned his attention back to the ceiling, "We saved those people. That's what matters."

Al actually managed a small chuckle. "And we _didn't_ die."

Edward laughed, but winced at the pain it caused in his stomach. "Yeah. Bonus points for us."

A moment of silence.

"Winry and Mei are gonna kill us," the younger Elric plainly concluded.

"Yep."

"Will it be a wrench or a spanner?"

"Hey, worry about your own wife and the kunai she's gonna use to split your forehead."

"I'm just saying…"

They were silent once more, with only the sounds of distant footsteps, wheels, and the traffic outside disrupting the air.

Ed started to feel a lump forming in his throat. "In those last few seconds, I thought I'd never see them again."

Al's eyes grew sad. "Brother, we can't do this anymore."

"Yeah…I know."

* * *

"A bomb!?" Mei and Winry stared at Jean Havoc in wide-eyed horror, leaning forward to the point of being right in his face.

Havoc, who had just picked the two women up from the train station in a military car, quickly lurched back in slight fear, but quickly regained his composure. Holding up his hands in the standard 'calm down' motion, he further explained, "It's not as bad as it seems. That jackass obviously killed himself, but the blast was rather small and horizontal, so, since they were on the floor, they didn't get hit with much besides maybe a few small pieces of shrapnel."

This tiny piece of positive information allowed the two Elrics to release a little sigh of relief, though both of them still had deep frowns on their faces and furrowed eyebrows. Worry still prominent in her eyes, Mei asked the lieutenant colonel, "Are they awake?"

"To be honest, I haven't heard much since the preliminary report, and that was yesterday. They were unconscious after being taken in – that bomb blast certainly didn't help the wounds they had already. Still, the doctor said they were in stable condition."

"Thank goodness," Winry sighed, but her hands remained clenched in her lap. "I don't know why, but for some reason I was expecting the absolute worse."

Havoc furrowed his eyebrows. "Those officers you had on the phone are gonna get a talkin' to. The least they could have done is assure you they weren't dying."

"It definitely would've sparred some anxiety," the older Elric woman admitted, "but don't be too harsh on them. I'm sure they were only doing what they were told."

She felt that familiar itch come to her. The one that made her want to take out her trusty wrench and hurl it at someone. A twitch in her eye and an evil grin appearing on her face, she muttered through grit teeth, "Besides, it's those morons' fault for getting hurt in the first place. You'd think after all this time they'd learn how to not get beat up."

Mei managed a nervous chuckle. "At least wait until they're out of the hospital before you maim them."

Havoc shuddered, glancing between the two. "Yep, you're Elric women alright."

"Sir," the driver interrupted from the front seat. "We're here."

Winry looked out the window to see that they had indeed pulled up on the all-too-familiar hospital. As the trio got out of the car, she tried to remember exactly how many times she'd climbed these stairs to visit Ed whenever he'd get into trouble during his military days. She'd hoped she would never have to do it again.

The two women followed Havoc up a couple floors and down a maze of hallways. The hospital had clearly been expanded since Winry had been here last. Soon, however, they came across a familiar looking nurses' island, with two rows of patient rooms on either side.

"Edward and Alphonse Elric," the lieutenant spoke plainly to a young nurse doing paperwork, straying from his usual flirtatious attitude. Pointing his head toward Winry and Mei, he added, "These are their wives."

"Of course." She jot down a few notes on a pad beside her before standing. Giving the other women a small smile, she said, "Right this way."

Leaving Havoc behind to go back to the awaiting car, the Elrics followed the young woman as she asked. They hadn't even made it a few steps before Winry couldn't help but ask, "How are they?"

"I'm not assigned to them, so I don't know their exact condition, Mrs. Elric. I can assure you they're doing well, though. I think they both woke up sometime this morning."

It was then that they stopped at a room nearly at the end of the hallway. The nurse lightly knocked on the door, opening it before she could receive a response. Poking her head in, she paused a second before exclaiming, "Good to see you two awake! You have some visitors!"

She turned back to Winry and Mei, smiling as she stepped aside and waved them in. Winry had already started to push past before the nurse was even fully out of the way, and Mei was right on her heels. It was a scene she'd seen too many times. An all too familiar hospital room, with the early afternoon sun coming in through the windows. Her husband and brother-in-law lay in their beds, shirtless and covered in scratches and bandages, but they were indeed both conscious. In fact, they were both looking at the door in confused curiosity to see who had come to see them. Just as Winry felt her heart swell in relief and happiness at the sight of them, the two brothers' golden eyes sparkled in recognition.

"Winry…"

"Mei."

The two women were already rushing over and tackling their husbands with tight embraces, disregarding any injuries they had. As soon as she reached his bed, Winry felt Ed's arms wrap firmly around her as they buried their faces in each other's shoulders. The room was silent as the couples took each other in, letting their pent-up worry and relief out into each other. After holding each other for quite a while, Winry pulled away and gave Ed a prompt kiss before looking him in the eye and saying, "You two are idiots."

He flashed her a smile and chuckled a bit, but she recognized the guilt in his eyes, which quelled her slight anger with them a little bit. "Yeah…"

"Thank goodness you're both okay," Mei exclaimed as she pulled away from Alphonse, a smile on her face as she added something a bit more positive.

"How'd you get here so fast?" Al asked. Winry looked over to see Mei grasping her husband's hand for dear life, afraid to let him go.

"I'd hardly call it fast," the older Elric woman admitted. For all her and Mei's worrying, she was at least going to make them feel a little bad. "Nothing like having to get on a train at eleven o'clock at night and then have a billion stops before getting here and being picked up by a military car and being told that your husbands got themselves _shot_ and nearly _blown up._ "

Both brothers winced at the obvious irritation being thrown at them, looking down at their laps in slight shame.

"We're sorry…" Ed apologized, his lips pursed. "We know you must have worried that whole time."

"Of course, we did," Mei sighed. She already looked like a huge weight had been taken off her shoulders after just seeing Al alive and well. With tired eyes, she added, "It didn't help that they called so late and we had to find someone to watch the kids…"

"The kids." Al immediately perked up, leaning forward. Noticeably gripping his wife's hand even harder and looking at her with concern, he inquired, "Do they know anything? How's Nina?"

"She's fine. They all are," she assured him with a small smile, caressing his cheek as she did so. That smile slowly dropped as she further explained, "We didn't want them to panic, so we tried to keep everything quiet. We dropped them off with Ms. Anais, and the girls didn't seem too concerned…but Aaron…"

"Aaron?" Ed, who had also perked up at the mention of their children, now looked even more concerned and looked at his sister-in-law intently. "What about Aaron?"

"He wanted to come," Winry answered plainly, looking down at the ground as she remembered her son's pleading golden eyes staring up at her. "He must have been listening in on us talking on the phone to know at least a bit of what was going on. He…"

She felt tears coming on, remembering what he had said to her. Gripping her knuckles, she looked at her husband and told him, "When I told him he couldn't come, he said, 'but what if Dad and Uncle Al die?' He said that to me."

That statement seemed to hit Edward like another bullet. His eyes widened in subdued horror at the thought, but Winry could soon see the sadness and guilt begin to swirl around in his expression. He grit his teeth and hung his head in his lap as if he were about to cry himself. "God, when did he get so big to think like that?"

His rhetorical question was answered with silence. Winry, Al, and Mei just watched him in sad uncertainty. Ed's wife felt so many emotions fighting for dominance in her heart – it almost felt like the same concoction from back when he'd get beat up weekly as a State Alchemist. She was angry at him for making her worry and busting his automail, in addition to having had little regard for his own life during said beating. Yet, at the same time, she was so proud of that exact same selflessness that drove him to help and save other people with such compassion. It left a huge contradiction inside her. Still, there was something different in their lives now than when they were teenagers – something so much more important and that changed everything.

"What if you _had_ died, Ed? What on earth would I have told them? How could I just look down at our children, at their sweet faces, and tell them…that…" She choked back a sob, covering her mouth with her hand. Tears were running down her cheeks now.

"Winry…" She didn't look at him, but she could hear the pain in Ed's voice. He hated seeing her cry, and the idea that she was proposing was equally as horrible to him as well.

"I remember what it's like…to have someone tell me that my mom and dad weren't coming home. I…could never do that to them…"

She really broke down after that. It wasn't even two seconds before she felt Ed grab her and pull her in tightly to his chest, holding her. Somehow, through her tears, she could hear Mei begin to sniffle and cry a bit as well. No doubt she'd been having the same fears about Nina. Winry didn't open her eyes, but she was sure Al was holding her just as tightly. Both Elric brothers remained silent, taking in their wives' tears and expressing their sorrow through their embraces.

After a few moments, Ed spoke in a quiet voice just as shaky as his arms around his wife. "You and the kids were what kept me alive, Winry. That bastard had a gun pointed right at my head and all I could think about what how I'd never be able to see you again if I died." After a pause, he added in a slightly lighter tone, "That and how much you were gonna kick my ass with a hammer if I did."

His attempt to cheer her up a bit worked. Chuckling with her face still buried in his shoulder, she muttered, "You bet I would."

He chuckled a bit, deep but quiet, so she could feel it reverberate through his chest. Arms still firmly around her, he kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Winry, and I love our children too. More than life itself. It's gonna take more than a couple bullets and some shrapnel to take me away from you."

"We're sorry for making you worry," Alphonse added. Winry opened her eyes and turned toward her brother-in-law to see him looking at his wife lovingly with some guilt left in his eyes. With red eyes, she placed a hand on his bandaged chest. It looked like he'd been hit just below his right shoulder, but by the look on her sister's face, Winry knew what she was thinking. If he'd just been a few more feet to the right when it happened, she wouldn't be talking with her husband right now.

Al, sensing her thinking, gently took her hand from his chest and kissed it, his lips lingering for a few seconds as he took in her touch. Winry knew that he'd probably seen Mei in those frightening moments like Ed had seen her. Looking his wife in the eyes, he smiled tenderly and told her, "Like Brother said, it's gonna take a hell of a lot more to get rid of me. Besides..." His smile turned into a loving smirk. "How could I leave my princess?"

This finally got a smile out of the Xingese woman. She leaned down and kissed him before saying, " _Never_ scare me like that again."

"If I had a penny for every time I heard you say that…"

"Can we please talk about how Al just said the cheesiest thing ever?" Edward interrupted, looking at his brother with a bit of overdone, incredulous disgust.

"Ed!" Winry chided her husband, smacking him on the shoulder, one of the few places on his body that wasn't injured, yet he still yelped a bit. "What he said was really romantic and you ruined it!"

"I'm just saying…!"

"He's just jealous because I've always been more romantic than he is," Alphonse teased with a smirk.

"Shut up! No, I'm not! For your information, I'm _very_ romantic!"

"Don't worry, Ed. I thought what you said to Winry was really sweet," Mei chimed in sincerely, though she smirked teasingly at her husband afterward.

"Mei!"

"Oh, calm down, Al. At least she's not gonna beat you with a spanner once you get out of here." Ed cautiously side-eyed his wife as he said this, clearly not excited for getting discharged.

Mei smiled sweetly at her brother-in-law, completely contradicting her next words, "Don't worry. He's definitely gonna get it in the next sparring match."

The younger Elric didn't look very thrilled about that either, but he looked down at his leg worriedly. "I probably won't be able to spar for a while thanks to this."

Mei's teasing nature immediately dissipated as she looked at him with newfound concern. "Al, did you hurt your leg too!?"

"Yeah. They shot at me from behind. I wasn't paying attention…"

"Oh, my gosh!" she suddenly face-palmed, looking guilty. "I should probably start healing you two! The faster you can get out of here, the better."

As Mei began preparation to do her alkahestry work on her husband, Ed, deadpanned, said, "I still forget she can do that sometimes…How long have they been married?"

Winry chuckled, turning his face and pulling him into a long kiss. Not too long ago, she'd been so afraid she'd never be able to do this again. Taking her lips away, she touched her forehead with his, her hands still holding his face and his on her waist. Quietly, she said, "I love you."

He gave her the first real smile she'd seen from him since arriving. "I promise. No more fighting."

"Oh, Ed, don't make a promise you can't keep."

"Okay, then. I promise that I will always do everything in my power to come back to you no matter what. That sound good?"

"I'll be holding you up to it."

* * *

 **Yay! Happy ending! I hope you enjoyed it! I've already got some ideas swirling as to what the next chapter will be, but I'm not making any promises on the next upload date! Please stay posted though - I _will_ keep up. **

**Thank you so much for reading! If you haven't already, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me, if you haven't already. Please leave a review to tell me what you think - I love opinions! Also check out my other FMA story, "The Truth Within The Truth." I know that one is in desperate need of an update, but trust me when I say if it's hard to update this one, it's definitely time consuming to update the other one. Like always, I will eventually get to it.**

 **Once again, Happy New Year and have a wonderful day!**


	17. Stay

**Two chapters in two days WHAAAAAAAAAAT?**

 **Yeah, I got on a huge writing kick after finishing Part 2 of the last one, so this is fresh and hot out of the oven. This does not happen very often in the wild and must be treasured.**

* * *

 **Flashing back to the Elric couples' younger days before they were married with kids. We may deny it, but there's always a little, healthy bit of lust that comes with being in love. Much like everyone else, each of the Elrics and their future wives has to deal with it in some form and confront it as they choose.**

 **(For those who are wondering and/or worried, nothing R-rated or mature happens in this chapter. Everything is purely suggestive.)**

* * *

"Tomorrow's gonna be a long day," Mei sighed to herself as she ran a brush through her hair. Her having just taken a bath, it was coming out a lot straighter than usual, reaching the middle of her back. She felt so much more refreshed – her body warm, her skin smooth, her muscles relaxed. It was exactly what she needed before their farewell party tomorrow night. Then, the day after that, it would be goodbye to this kingdom and on to the next new place on their journey east. It had almost been a year and a half now since her and the guys had left Xing – sometimes it felt like it'd been no time at all and sometimes it felt like she'd been traveling for as long as she could remember.

A knock at the door took her out of her thoughts. "Mei, can I come in?"

Alphonse. His voice surprised her a bit. It was around the time most people in the castle would be getting to bed. What was he doing out so late?

Though her bed clothes were more than modest – a long sleeved nightgown going all the way to the floor – she felt the need to put on her robe. Quickly tying it, she answered, "Yeah. It's open."

Her boyfriend appeared from the other side of the door, smiling and rubbing his neck sheepishly. She felt a little embarrassed by covering up so much, as he was wearing his normal sleep shorts and, though he usually slept shirtless, he wore a tank top he typically reserved for sparring. Coming in, he said, "Sorry. I think I left my book in here from when I was reading earlier."

The princess couldn't help but chuckle at his slight embarrassment. "You left it on the windowsill." Watching him as he went to grab it, she couldn't help but ask, "Why do you like reading in here so much?"

"You have a better view than me," he told her, picking up the book and gazing out the window at the landscape below. He leaned against the wall as he did this, but after a few seconds, he felt her eyes still on him and turned to her with a slight smirk. God, she could melt under that look.

She smiled cheekily at him. "Is that the only reason?"

"Hmm…I think so." Still smirking, he punctuated his sentence by turning on his heels and heading back for the door.

Mei actually laughed a bit at the straightforward answer. Speed-walking, she made her way across the room before he could, standing between him and the entrance. Obviously having allowed her to do that, Al simply stood there, smiling tenderly at her. Now it was her time to smirk. Stepping closer to him, she took the book out of his hands, setting it on the bedside table. She then gently grabbed his face and pulled his lips to hers. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her even closer as he kissed her deeper. God, it was amazing she still could still feel so much electricity with every kiss he gave her.

He gently pulled away, though they remained close. Giving her that loving look that made her swoon, he said, "Maybe there's one other reason…"

She merely chuckled in reply, kissing him again. They stood there, engrossed in each other, for what felt like a small eternity. Mei felt so starved of his touch it wasn't even funny. Much like the Xingese nobility, the few royal families they had stayed with on their journey were split on the idea of a princess being with a foreign commoner. Some were completely open to their love transcending class and nationality, but there were others who made their opposite views quite obvious without even having to say anything, much like where they were now. Any other time, their group would have just skipped the area all together, but the kingdom of Multan had an extremely advanced variant of alkahestry that the two of them couldn't dare pass up, so they'd been keeping their relationship secret the entire month they'd been there. Outside of the research, Mei quickly found that she absolutely hated it. Disregarding the fact that Zampano, Jerzo, and Al had to act completely formal around her in public – calling her "Princess" and not being allowed to openly speak with her, among other things – she was almost always under guard, which made a romantic rendezvous completely out of the question. This was the first kiss they'd stolen in two weeks.

It was probably because of this and the feeling of being enveloped in his arms that when they reluctantly pulled away once more, breathless, she looked into his eyes and said, "Stay with me tonight."

Alphonse clearly looked taken aback her words. Eyes widening a bit and face turning a bit red, he gaped at her, "Mei…"

Immediately realizing what he thought she meant, she instantly felt herself turn bright red. Looking down at the ground, her hands still on his shoulders, she explained quickly and quietly, "We don't have to do anything. Just…be here with me. Stay."

Understanding now, the alchemist's gaze softened. "I would if I could, but…"

"There's nothing stopping you."

"Mei, if we were caught, it wouldn't end well for either of us here."

She looked at him for a minute, considering his words. _He's right, but he_ shouldn't _be. None of this is right._ Making a sour face and burying her face in his shirt, she muttered, "I hate this place."

This got a small laugh out of her boyfriend, who held her close and kissed the top of her head. "I'll admit it's not my favorite."

She wrapped her arms around his waist as well, hugging him and wondering aloud, "How is it that I can miss you when you've been beside me this whole time?"

He brushed her hair away behind her ear, running his fingers through the recently brushed strands. "Two more days, then we'll be out of here, and I'll be with you for as long as you want me to be."

They held their embrace for a moment or two, Mei listening to Al's heart beating steadily inside his chest. Finally, she pulled away and gave him another kiss – small, but tender. Reaching up and running a hand through his hair, she told him, "I love you."

He smiled that signature smile of his, taking her hand in his and gently kissing her fingers. Speaking in a half-jokingly tone, but also looking genuine, he said, "It's probably best if I don't stay here. As a gentleman, I can't very well stay overnight with a such a beautiful lady."

The Xingese princess smiled a bit. "And why is that?"

Though that adoring look remained, something in his eyes changed, and suddenly all the air in her lungs was gone. Drawing his face closer to hers and caressing her cheek, he answered softly, his voice seeming deeper than usual, "I love you too much."

 _Oh._ With those words and the way his fingers tingled on her skin, she suddenly wasn't sure if she _hadn't_ meant what he thought she did. Running her hands down his shoulders, she brushed her lips against his. "Who says?"

"Me." He smiled into her lips and kissed her tenderly. A few more kisses were exchanged, and the princess could feel them deepening, but Al gently pulled away, though obviously with some effort. He smiled somewhat knowingly at her, and, kissing her forehead, quietly said, "Goodnight, Mei."

"Goodnight, Al," she replied, still a bit pleasantly shaken by what he'd said to her. As he slowly walked away, she still held onto his hand until he was too far and their fingers slipped from each other. Throwing one last loving glance at her, she watched as he turned around and closed the door behind him.

She stood for a few seconds in silence, still computing the exchange they'd just had. _He's never looked at me that way before._ Something on the nightstand in her periphery somehow tore her from her thoughts, and, seeing it, she began giggling. "After all that, he forgot his book…"

* * *

Ed bolted straight up, panting and sweating a bit. As the panic and adrenaline began to subside, he gained his bearings. He was in his bedroom at the Rockbells' – an old guest bedroom that had grown to be his and Al's after they had burned their old home to the ground, filled with minimal furniture and belongings. It was still dark outside, with only a little bit of moonlight shining through the blinds.

The Promised Day was over. It was years ago, in fact. He wasn't a State Alchemist anymore. Father and the Homunculi were gone. Al was back to normal. Everyone was safe.

Sighing a bit and trying to get his breath back, he hung his head between his knees. He'd fortunately been getting less and less nightmares as the years went by, but every so often they'd pop up again. They were usually about all the same stuff too – if not the Promised Day, then about the day they committed the taboo, or about what happened to Nina Tucker, or something of that horrible nature. Same old, same old.

For a few minutes, he tried to calm himself down, but the musky summer humidity just pushed in on him like nobody's business. _I need some air._

He wasn't sure why he loved Winry's balcony so much. Maybe because it allowed him to see far down the road and across the plains at the homes of their friends and neighbors. Maybe because it allowed him to catch the breeze earlier. Maybe it was because it allowed him to be close to her if she was working on something in her room.

Walking across the hallway, he peeked into her room through her ajar door. Of course, tonight of all nights, she was asleep in bed rather than being down in her workshop like she'd been the past few weeks. Carefully opening the door, with was gracious enough to not creak, he began tiptoeing his way across the room, a feat not easily done when one of your feet is made of metal. Slightly cringing every time his automail foot hit the floor with a tiny thunk, he watched his fiancée vigilantly, praying she wouldn't wake up. Finally, he reached the other side of the room and the balcony doors. He turned around to go and open them, but…

"Ed?" Winry's voice called out sleepily behind him. "What are you doing?

 _"Damn it,"_ he mouthed, now feeling guilt on top of his lingering post-nightmare anxiety. He turned back around to see her sitting up underneath her covers, staring at him quizzically through tired eyes. Wincing but smiling at her apologetically, he quietly explained, "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"What are you doing?" she asked again, getting up and rubbing her eyes. "It's the middle of the night."

"I…" He felt himself turn a bit red at how silly it kind of sounded. "I wanted to get some fresh air on the balcony."

"The balcony? Why didn't you just go to the backyard?" Apparently, she found it silly as well. Not to mention she had a good point.

"I just…" God, anything he could say would sound stupid, and he was way too worn out for excuses. Sighing and running a hand through his loose hair, he admitted quietly, "I had a nightmare, so I wanted to look out and clear my head."

This caught her attention. The moonlight coming through the window shone bright on her blue eyes, which looked at him with newfound concern. She quietly walked over and caressed his cheek, brushing his hair out of his face. It still gave him shivers when she touched him so gently like that. "Do you wanna tell me about it?"

He shook his head slightly, gently placing his hand on hers. Trying to give her his best reassuring smile, he told her, "I'm fine. It was just the same-old stuff. It's not like I haven't dealt with it before."

He was at least telling the truth on that. If there was one thing he could appreciate, it's that his dreams hadn't thrown any curve balls at him in quite some time. Winry, of course, didn't look too convinced with his words. Her expression turned sad as she stepped closer, laying her head on his chest. She knew about his dreams more than anyone else. Once he'd decided to marry her, Ed had decided that he would never hide anything from her ever again. That only caused more problems, and being able to talk with her had actually helped with the bad dreams.

"After everything, you're still afraid this is all a dream?" Winry asked, looking up and meeting his gaze. "That all you've accomplished has been a fantasy? Ed…how can you even think something like that?"

 _Because this life is almost too good to be true._ That's what he thought, but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. He was too busy looking into her deep blue eyes, eyes that were always swirling with ideas and emotions that he could just get lost in. His fiancée already seemed to know his answer, or she was annoyed with his silence. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him down to her level, kissing him softly.

Edward used to call bull on those people who always talked about every kiss with their partner being like their first or that they just forgot everything else around them when they were with them. Leave it to Winry to prove him wrong, as usual. Maybe it was because he had fallen for her so slowly until he fell really hard, or maybe it was simply just the reality of being with such a wonderful woman, but every single touch of her lips sent all kinds of shivers throughout his body. All at once, everything left his mind, and there was only her. Wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close, he kissed her deeper.

He completely lost track of how long they stood there, embracing each other's touches. They kissed, and kissed, and kissed again. He took in her softness, her taste, her intensity. Everything. He wanted her. He wanted her everything.

 _Whoa, there._

He quickly broke his lips away from hers, breathing heavily like he'd just run a marathon and his mind clearing up like he'd been in a fog. God, what was _that?_ Winry was breathing heavily as well, a bright blush on her cheeks and looking just as shocked as Ed was at what had just happened. Not only that, but he saw that they had at some point leaned against the wall without him noticing. That freaked him out a bit – he wasn't sure if it was good or bad, though.

Removing his hands from her waist and stepping back to give her room, he looked down at the ground in slight embarrassment. "Sorry…"

"No. You don't have to apologize…" Her voice was a lot quieter and more sheepish than he was used to. He looked up at her in surprise, but she also looked down in embarrassment. "It…was nice. You've, uh…you've never kissed me like that before."

"Yeah…" the former alchemist rubbed the back of his neck, his face burning with a blush. "I figured…you know…we should stop."

His fiancée continued to look at the ground for a moment before finally looking up. Like her, he found himself glancing down as well. He heard her walk closer to him, eventually feeling her hand lifting his chin so he'd look at her. Looking at him with a soft intensity, she said, "Stay here with me tonight."

 _BA-BUMP,_ said his heart, threatening to leap out of his chest.

 _Holy shit_ said Edward to himself as he stared at the mechanic in shock.

Seeing the surprised look on his face, Winry's blush deepened as she quickly waved her hands in deflection of the idea. "You know! Just in case you have another nightmare, you'll be here already!"

He stared at her for a second, not quite sure if he was relieved or disappointed. Eventually, though, he couldn't help but smile at his bride-to-be. Leaning in and gingerly kissing her forehead, he almost whispered his response.

"Alright. If you want me to."

* * *

 **Woo! I'm so proud of myself for writing this so fast! I feel like it's slightly different from what I normally do, so please review and tell me what you think.**

 **As always, if you liked reading this, please favorite and/or follow this story and/or me, if you haven't already. If you have, thank you for the support! Also feel free to check out my other FMA fic, "The Truth Within The Truth." (Which is in desperate need of an update).**

 **That's all for now! Again please tell me what you think and feel free to tell me what you'd like to see!**

 **Happy New Year and have a wonderful day!**


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